Roses for a Queen
by Haliaetus
Summary: [KuramaOC] A fic I wrote last year and have finally gotten around to posting. The OC has a past that comes back to haunt her when she joins up with the Spirit Detectives, but is she ready to face it and move on? Adventureromance. Complete.
1. Prologue

Roses for a Queen 

-Prologue-

I whirled around as I heard the telltale steps of someone coming up behind me, my golden hair whipping around to hit the stone wall with a light swish and my amber eyes flashing with surprise. When I saw who it was, I relaxed visibly, lowering my sword from the defensive position it had been in.

"Suzaku! Don't do that to me!" I said exasperatedly, glad it was just my student. The young demon shuffled his feet in an apologetic manner.

"Sorry, Master." He said, lowering his head. I smiled and reached out to lift his head so I could look at his face.

"It's okay, Suzaku. Just try to remember to announce your presence before you approach me next time." He nodded and joined me at the window I had been looking out of. For a moment, we were both silent, the Suzaku spoke without looking at me.

"Master?" I glanced at him.

"Yes?"

"Where will you go when you've finished teaching Seiryu and I?" His voice seemed to me to be the voice of a child losing something beloved. I sighed; I hadn't wanted to bring up the subject until I had to, but Suzaku had always been rather impetuous.

"I don't know." I said finally, looking back out of the window. We were in a building that I had found many, many years ago, long abandoned by its original owners but suiting my needs perfectly. The past three decades, I had shared the space with my two students, Seiryu and Suzaku. The western windows, which was where we were at the moment, looked out over the great Tibador Plains. "Maybe I'll go back to wandering."

"I've heard that the king is dying and that there'll be a tournament soon." He said, still not looking at me. "Will you compete in it?"

"Maybe." The idea had occurred to me a couple of weeks ago when I had gone into the nearby town for supplies. The one demon that could defeat all of the other contenders for the throne would be crowned King or Queen of the whole Makai realm. I had gone so far as to get the sign up forms, but I hadn't been able to bring myself to actually send them in. Now that the end of my time with the two young demons was in sight, I thought that maybe I actually would send them in, after all.

"I think you could win, Master." Suzaku's voice was full of confidence in me. I smiled, a bit sadly.

"I probably could." I replied, not so sure as he was. I scanned the darkening horizon, putting thoughts of the end out of my mind. There would be time later for this discussion. For now, all I wanted was to spend some time with the two demons that meant the most to me in the whole Makai.


	2. Who are you?

"Kurama! Kurama!" I called as I ran down the street, avoiding the people around me and their disturbed glances, hoping that my memory served me and the red-haired boy ahead of me was the one Botan had sent me to find. The boy turned around, startled, and I could have cried with relief. It was him. I jogged up to him. "Kurama?"

"Yes. Who are you? How did you know my name?" He asked, frowning slightly. I panted slightly, trying to get my breath back and brushing my long black hair back from my hot face.

"That doesn't matter right now. Botan sent me to find you." I said. Kurama's frown deepened at Botan's name and I remembered that she was the one who generally gave the spirit detectives their missions. "You have to come with me! Yusuke needs your help!"

He stared at me for a moment, probably trying to decide whether to trust me or not, before grabbing my arm and dragging me back the way I had come. I stumbled after him until I could get my feet under me.

"Tell me while we run." He ordered. I nodded and took the lead, leading him back to the alley where I'd left Botan and Yusuke.

"Some demons kidnapped Keiko," I explained, "To draw Yusuke out. He went after them alone, of course, idiot that he is. Botan and I didn't find out 'till 'bout two hours ago and it took a while for us to find him. Unfortunately, there were too many demons, and Yusuke was knocked unconscious shortly after we got there. Botan's with him now, but she can't protect and heal him at the same time, which is why we have to hurry."

"So you're asking for my help." He said as we made another turn onto a different street. The people near us looked at us oddly and moved out of our way. I shot him a disgusted look, ignoring everything else.

"Look, fox. If I didn't need your help, I wouldn't be asking for it. It's just that I wasn't at my best when we started fighting, and I can't do it alone now." I told him.

"Huh. So, who are you?" Kurama asked, looking at me sideways. I glanced at him, wondering why I hadn't remembered that he was so cute. Then his question hit me.

I hesitated; I usually avoided telling demons, or anyone else for that matter, who and what I was if I could. "I'll tell you later. After we save Keiko." I said finally. Hopefully, he would forget my promise and I wouldn't have to tell him who I was. It wasn't like I was planning on staying with them all that long, anyway, just long enough to refresh my memory on who they were and how powerful they were.

"Hmm," Was all he said. A few minutes later, we turned down an abandoned alley, to find Yusuke sprawled out on the ground and Botan kneeling next to him, concentrating on holding off the dozen or so demons trying to get to Yusuke off. I squatted down next to Botan.

"Hey, I got Kurama, so you can let it go now." I told her. She gave a relieved sigh and dropped the barrier. The demons hesitated, unsure if there was something else coming.

They hesitated too long.

Kurama and I leapt at them, causing them to split. The red-haired boy struck out with a thorny whip, slicing through them like a hot knife through butter before they could move. I wielded nothing more than a long dagger made of my aura, preferring to go hand to hand, this time at least. I really didn't have the power right now to dismember each with my mind only.

I had just permanently separated a demon's head from its neck when I happened to catch sight of Kurama, who was behind and slightly to the left of me. He was concentrating on a group of three or four demons and hadn't noticed that one demon had managed to get behind him and was preparing to strike with a short dagger, a real one made of steel.

With a yell, I leapt just as the demon surged forward. Kurama whipped around, but he was too slow. As I crashed into him, I felt the demon's blade stab into my side. Landing heavily on Kurama, I knew it was bad, maybe fatal. Even so, I somehow stood up and even managed to catch one of the fleeing demons.

Holding him in a vice like grip with one hand, the other trying to staunch the flow of blood from my wound, I glared at his ugly pug-face. "Who sent you, you worthless scumbag?"

"I d-don't know." He stammered. "W-we w-were j-just t-told to k-kidnap the g-girl!" I tightened my grip on his neck, causing his eyes to bulge, before tossing him off to the side. I already knew he didn't have anything worthwhile to tell me. Behind me, I heard Kurama getting up.

"Keiko is back there. There may be guards." I said, pointing over my shoulder without looking at him. I stumbled forward to sit against the wall near Botan. With a sigh, I closed my eyes and succumbed to the pain and exhaustion.

(Kurama's POV)

I trotted behind Keiko as she ran forward to join Botan and the now conscious Yusuke. The human punk didn't seem to have come away with anything more harmful than a few bruises and neither did Keiko. I went over to sit next to Botan, but I caught sight of the girl who had come after me sitting up against the wall with her eyes closed. I noted with a bit of confusion that her hair, previously black, was now a light silver color.

Going over to kneel next to her, I gently pulled her hand away from the wound it had been covering. I quickly examined it. Rocking back on my heels, I looked at Botan.

"She's got a pretty bad knife wound." I told the blue-haired girl. "Do you have enough energy left to heal her?" Botan got up and came over to look.

"Hmm. I can heal it a fair ways, but I'm too drained to do the full job; you'll have to finish it." She said after a moment. I nodded.

"That's what I thought." I said, resigned. "Please do what you can, then. I'll do whatever you can't."


	3. A Royal Identity

(Li-Sanya's POV)

When I woke up, it took me a moment to remember where I was. Looking around, I saw three shapes more or less grouped together. I could just make out Botan's blue hair and Keiko and Yusuke's faces. The only one missing was Kurama.

Thinking about Kurama, I remembered the knife wound. Looking down, I could see blood still on my clothes, but the wound itself was healed. I frowned slightly; Botan would have been drained after healing Yusuke and possibly Keiko, too drained to heal me to this degree, anyway, and Yusuke and Keiko had no healing powers that I knew of, so that left Kurama.

Just as I came to that conclusion, I saw some movement across the nearly empty room. I tensed, automatically placing my hand to where my dagger usually was before remembering that I had lost it a few days ago to some mugger dude. So I prepared my aura sword instead. If whatever had moved was going to attack and was counting on me being too injured to fight, they'd get one heck of a surprise.

In fact, I was so prepared to strike that when Kurama spoke, I nearly killed him anyway.

"You can relax, I'm not going to attack you after spending a considerable amount of energy healing you." Kurama stepped out of the shadows, carrying several blankets. "If you're feeling up to it, you can help me with these." He continued, indicating the blankets with his head.

I nodded and got up, letting the aura sword dissipate. For a moment, I felt a bit of dizziness and had to steady myself against the wall until it passed. Kurama looked at me, a slightly worried expression on his face.

"Of course, if you're not, you should rest." He said, I shook my head.

"No, I'm feeling fine. I just stood up too fast." I said quickly, not wanting him to think of me as weak. I smiled slightly to show I really was okay. Kurama looked doubtful, but didn't say anything more.

I helped him place the blankets over Botan, Keiko and Yusuke. When we had finished, we sat down against the wall, slightly worn out. We were both silent for a moment, then I turned to Kurama, still not entirely certain about something.

"So, you were the one who healed me?" I was already pretty sure of the answer, but I wanted to be absolutely certain.

"Yes, Botan was too drained after healing Yusuke after using her energy to protect him for so long." I nodded; that had been what I had expected to hear. He turned to look at me, seeming curious about something as well. "Hey. Earlier, before we got here, you called me a fox. How did you know I was a fox demon?" I glanced at him, surprised. Then I remembered; I hadn't told him who I was, or what.

"I could see it." I replied quietly, not looking at him. He returned the surprised look.

"You could see it? How?" He asked, incredulous.

I shrugged. "I don't know. I just look at some one and it appears like a color in their aura and I know. It just happens."

He was quiet a moment before turning to me again. "So, who are you? And what are you?" He said quietly. "No human could have figured it out on their own that I was a fox demon. Besides, you said you'd tell me after we were done here."

I sighed, figured he'd remember, especially since foxes have good memories (or, at lest the ones I knew did). "So I did." I said just as quietly, still not looking at him. "So I did." I took a deep breath to gather the courage to say what I hadn't told anyone for the past 478 years. "My name…My name is Li-Sanya."

Kurama blinked, then scowled slightly as he realized what that meant. "Li-Sanya? But wasn't that the name of-"

"-The Makai queen?" I finished his sentence. He nodded. "Yes it was and still is, though I no longer hold that position." His scowl deepened.

"But Li-Sanya died over 500 years ago!" He protested. I shook my head slowly.

"No, she didn't." I said slowly. "She only set it up so it would seem like she died. The body that was buried was one of the maids assigned to me, given my appearance." I smiled slightly. "It was trivial work for the most powerful demon in the Makai, though I'll admit that there was a certain thief king who was rumored to be almost as powerful. Though, it's now said that he died about fifteen years ago." I said thoughtfully. Looking sideways at Kurama, I raised my eyebrows innocently. "I don't suppose you knew him, did you?" Kurama tried to hide his surprise and apprehension, and failed.

"How did you know?" He asked, settling on a simply confused look.

"Oh, the Makai Queen knows all." I said mysteriously. Then I switched back to being serious. "But seriously, if I was still the Makai Queen, I would probably have to fight and, possibly, kill you if you turned out to be as strong as the rumors say. Lucky for you, I'm not. Not anymore, though I suppose if I try, I could get the title and position again." I had been smiling slightly to take the barb off my words, but now my face fell. "Or, rather, I could if I had all my powers."

Kurama's expression became confused again. "You don't have all your powers?" I shook my head.

"Nope. Right now, I currently have…oh, only about a twentieth of what I started out with today and that was only half of my original power." I said simply and casually. Kurama's eyebrows skyrocketed.

"What?! How could that happen?" He exclaimed, leaning forward slightly. I looked at him.

"You can't figure it out?" I asked, frowning slightly. I had thought this guy was the former thief king, so he should have at least figured it out by now. Maybe I had been wrong…

"Well, yeah, but I mean…who could do that? And to you!" He now seemed worried as well, probably since whoever had reduced my powers had to be at least as powerful as I used to be.

I sighed. "A curse doesn't have to be cast by someone more powerful than the victim." I explained slowly, as if to a particularly dense student. This was obviously new to him. "As long as the victim does not have sufficient barriers against that particular curse type, or even the curse itself, just about anyone can cast the curse." I closed my eyes, remembering. "I was asleep when he came. As usual, I had the barriers up around my quarters and especially around myself, but he still managed to get in. Before I was fully awake, since the breaking of my barriers had woken me, he had put these on me and cast the curse." I held up my wrists, the two thick black bands glinting dully in the moonlight. "I never did see his face, but I remember his voice…I'll never forget it…" I trailed off, lost in the memory.

_I blinked, trying to clear the sleepiness from my eyes so I could see my unwelcome visitor more clearly. "What the-?" I was cut off by his kneeling next to where I was propped up on several large cushions. He placed his hands around my wrists. They felt warm, almost hot, as if he was burning with fire. As they started to glow, I suddenly realized what he was doing and I started to defend myself, but it was too late, the curse had been cast. The demon stood and I could see his red eyes glinting in the shadows, reflecting the dim light of the candle still burning next to my bed._

"_There now, that didn't hurt did it?" Then he laughed, a deep chuckle that chilled my heart and sent a shiver up and down my spine. "Or, at least, it hasn't yet!" Then he was gone, the window's curtain swinging in the breeze as he left out the window, the same way he'd come in._

_I stood to call my servants in, but as I opened my mouth, I felt sharp pains coming from my wrists. Looking down, I saw thin strands of black energy crackling around the bands that were now wrapped around my wrists. The black energy started to travel up my arms and I collapsed to the ground, in pain and unable to call out for help. Eventually, I simply passed out from the agony._

"These cuffs limited my powers, cutting them to about a quarter." I continued after a moment. "But a curse like this had to have several key components, to help keep the curse in place, and one major key that would activate or deactivate the curse and be the hinge point of the curse. The lesser components were fairly easy to discover and counter, so today I had about half of my original power, but the rest was locked away with the major one, and, although I know what it is, I can't counter it. It's impossible for me." I sighed as I finished talking and I glanced at Kurama to see his reaction. I was a bit uneasy about how he'd take it, seeing as I hadn't even told anyone my name, much less how I had fallen out of power as the Makai Queen, for over four and a half centuries. Why I had told him, I had no idea, but it felt like a great weight had been lifted off of my shoulders. I didn't have the feeling that I had a great and terrible secret anymore.

Kurama stared at the floor, obviously thinking pretty deeply about something, and, although I could have easily entered his mind to figure out what he was thinking about, I was content to simply let him think for a while. Finally, he sighed and looked back up at me.

"Well, interesting though that is…" He began and I bit my lip slightly, "…It still doesn't tell me how you knew my name." I blinked, caught off balance.

"Uhh…your name?" I was still a bit confused; I'd been expecting something like, "Prove you're the Makai Queen," or something.

"Yes, my name." He repeated. "I don't believe I've ever met you, so I wouldn't have told you my name, and even if you had found it out in the Ningenkai, the name you would have probably gotten from a description of me would be Shuichi Minamino, my human name, and that's not what you've been calling me." He said in one breath.

"Oh. That." I said, finally understanding. "Well, that's easy. Botan told me your name and gave me a description." He seemed a little put off by this, since he'd probably been expecting some other odd way that I had know his name like I'd known what he was.

"Oh, okay." He blinked. Then something else seemed to occur to him. "So, how did you know Botan?"

"Oh, we've been best friends for about…75 years, now." I said flippantly, waving my hand in the air. He ducked as I waved my hand through the space his head had previously occupied. "Oh, sorry. Anyway, she tells me just about everything, so I've known about you guys since the beginning."

"Really?"

"Yeah, and, actually, I was there when you saved your mom." I told him casually, wanting to surprise him even more. I succeeded. He didn't even make the connection that if I had been there, then I would've gotten his real name from that and not from Botan like I'd said.

"What?! How did you know about that?!" He exclaimed so loudly, Yusuke groaned and rolled over. He immediately lowered his voice. "Tell me."

"I can change my appearance, you know." I said, just as casually. "Just because you didn't see me doesn't mean I wasn't there."

"Huh." Was all he said. I frowned at the thoughtful tone, not knowing what the reason was.

"Hey! It's not like I was stalking you, you know! I was actually following Yusuke at that point." I informed him, crossing my arms defensively.

"Whatever." He said. Then he yawned and, looking surprised, glanced up at the sky. We had talked through the night. "Huh, it's morning already. We'd better wake these sleeping beauties up." I grinned.


	4. You Did It!

Later, after a rather meager breakfast (we hadn't exactly been prepared to spend the night outside), we set off for Yusuke's house, which the others said was closer than Kurama's. Just before we left the alley, though, Kurama stopped me. I glanced back at him with a questioning look, wondering why he had stopped me.

"You've let your hair and eyes go back to silver." He told me. "You might want to change that; they'll get you noticed."

I nodded and concentrated for a moment before looking back at him for confirmation. He nodded and we set out. As we walked, I stared at his back, wondering how he had known my hair's natural color was silver and not the black it usually was. Then I remembered that I had more or less told him that I was a demon and it all made sense. About 20 minutes later, Yusuke announced that we were only a couple of blocks away from his house.

Under my breath, I muttered, "And we were sure his was the closest? My feet are killing me…" Kurama must have heard me, because he turned and grinned at me.

"Sounds like someone should go for walks more often." He said teasingly. I glared at him.

"Huh. As if you'd catch me doing that. I'll have you know that the only reason I'm walking at all is because I don't have the energy to change my shape at the moment." I informed him moodily. He just grinned even more and turned back. I continued to glare at his back.

Just then, Yusuke called back to Kurama, "Hey, Kurama! Where's Hiei, anyway?" I raised an eyebrow; I didn't know who this Hiei was, though his name seemed familiar, as if I'd heard it before somewhere… Kurama frowned slightly.

"I'm not sure." He said slowly. "I think he said something about going to the park, though."

"Oh. Should we go get him? Kuwabara's probably already back at the house, so Hiei'd be the only one missing." Yusuke said, actually being smart for once. Kurama shrugged.

"Sure. It's only a short side trip anyway." He said. I sighed deeply; I'd really been looking forward to putting my feet up and not having to walk for a while. Kurama noticed. "Oh, come on, Li, it's not too far." I glanced up at him, surprised to hear him using a nickname for me already. Then I shrugged, indicating my disinterest and trying to hide the sudden rush of warmth I'd felt.

"Fine. It's not as if my feet could hurt any more anyway." I said resignedly. Yusuke grinned.

"That's okay. If they hurt too bad, I'll carry you." He offered hopefully. I raised an eyebrow.

"Fat chance." I said sarcastically as Botan whipped out an oar and hit him over the head.

"Ow! What was that for?" He protested, rubbing the back of his head.

"Don't forget about Keiko!" Botan told him in a no-nonsense tone of voice.

"Fine, fine. I was just kidding anyway." He muttered as we set off for the park.

The park turned out to be a pretty large section of grass with a ton of trees scattered around it. Several paths wound their way through the trees and were dotted with benches and trashcans. Close to where we were, there was a hotdog vendor with a short line of younger children and their parents. Kurama was surveying the trees and their visible branches with a slight frown. I noticed and went up next to him, following his gaze.

"So, this Hiei is going to be up in a tree?" I asked him. He turned to look at me and nodded.

"Yes, he prefers to be alone and undisturbed if at all possible." He said before turning back to look at the trees. I bit my lip; unless I had some more specific information, I wasn't going to be able to help much more than Yusuke could.

"Is he a demon?" I asked. This time Kurama answered without looking at me, in a distracted tone of voice.

"Yes, a fire demon." That seemed to set off a bell in my head, but I couldn't put my finger on why.

"Oh, okay." I said, starting to walk off. As I strolled down one of the paths, I opened my awareness and searched for the aura of a fire demon in the area of the park. It didn't take more than five minutes before I smirked and muttered, "Found you."

Turning, I cupped my hands and called back to Kurama, who had started down a different path. "Hey, Kurama! I found him!" The fox demon turned and waved to show he'd heard me and started jogging in my direction. I continued walking along the path, keeping my eye on a large oak situated about twenty yards ahead of me and slightly to the left. As I drew even with it, I slowed to a stop and put my hands on my hips.

"You can come down now." I said to no one in particular. "There's no point in staying up there now that I know you're there."

"Hn." There was a rustling and a moment later a dark blur came down to land on the path. The fire demon, Hiei, turned out to be a short boy with spiky black hair with a starburst of white and crimson eyes that was wearing all black except for a white bandana wrapped around his forehead. I frowned when I saw him. Why did he look so familiar…?

Just then, Kurama joined us and smiled down at Hiei. "Thanks, Li." He said, looking at me with a smile. "That really saved us a ton of time."

"You're welcome." I said, smiling back as the warmth came back. "How long does it usually take to find him?" I asked, curious, pushing the warm, fuzzy feeling away.

"Oh, about an hour and a half, and that's our fastest time, so far." He replied casually.

"Not like it's my fault." Hiei spoke up and we both turned to look at him. "The idiots couldn't find a stick that was sitting right in front of them if they tried."

I stared at him, suddenly realizing why he seemed so familiar. "It was you…," I said slowly. "You did it…"

Hiei glanced at me with those crimson eyes, still so intense even after five hundred years. "I did what?" He asked, frowning.

"You gave me these." I said, holding up my wrists. His eyes went wide when he saw them and I realized he hadn't recognized me, either.

"You're…but you…I saw you…" He couldn't seem to find the right words or something, but either way, I had managed to shock him completely. Finally, he settled on, "But you died!"

I shook my head. "Well, obviously, I didn't." I noticed Kurama looking rather lost and confused. "He-" I pointed at Hiei. "-Is why I have these bands and why my power is restrained. He's the one who placed the curse on me." I explained. He finally understood and nodded, then turned to Hiei with a slight frown.

"Is she right?" He asked quietly, surprised that he was learning something like this about a close friend. "Did you really put the curse on her?" Hiei nodded, but he was still looking at me.

"Yeah, I did, but she was supposed to die shortly after!" He protested. Kurama raised an eyebrow and the short demon turned to him in a defensive manner. "What?! I was with the Akai Ame group at the time and they were against her rule from the start! It was pure luck that I was chosen to go on the mission."

"Hmm." Kurama was quiet for a moment. "Well, if you guys can't get along, then I'm afraid we're going to have to keep you separated, though how we'll be able to do that if Li sticks around with us, I have no idea." He sighed in mock resignment.

"Hey!" I interrupted. "Who ever said we wouldn't get along? For all you know we could become best friends, though, with what I've seen of his temper, I seriously doubt it."

Hiei glared at me. "Who ever said I even wanted to be _your_ friend, baka onna?" I turned on him, also glaring.

"What did you just call me?" I demanded, grinding my teeth.

"A baka onna, why?"

"Ooooh, you're _so_ gonna pay for that!" I swiped at his head, but he ducked. Reaching out, I tried to grab him, but he started running so I followed. The next half-hour consisted mostly of me trying to catch Hiei, him running from me and me actually managing to somehow stay right behind him, even when he was going top speed, which was pretty fast. Finally, though, he stopped paying attention to where he was going and tripped over a small rock. Unfortunately, I was right behind him, so I also tripped. However, I landed on something much softer than the hard ground.

"Ooof…" Hiei exhaled as I landed heavily on him, pressing him closer to the ground. I snorted.

"Serves you right for tripping me." I told him. Suddenly I realized just what I was doing and got up quickly, blushing furiously. (Hey, just because I'm a queen doesn't mean I can't be embarrassed!)

"Well, if you hadn't been following so closely, you wouldn't have tripped and fallen on me!" He retorted as he also stood up and dusted himself off, seemingly ignorant of what had just happened.

"I wouldn't have been chasing you at all if you hadn't called me a baka onna!" I immediately shot back at him, completely forgetting my previous embarrassment in my anger.

"Hn." He said, starting to walk back to where Kurama was still waiting. I followed him, glaring at his back. Suddenly, I got an idea and smiled slightly.

You know, I'm pretty certain that there would be a fair amount of people wanting to learn just what goes through your head, Hiei. I said silently. Up ahead, I watched in satisfaction as Hiei stopped short, startled.

_Who is that?_ He asked, a slight tinge of—was that fear?—coloring his 'voice'.

_Oh, puh-leez. Like you couldn't guess._

_Li-Sanya…?_

_Oh, bravo! You just won the grand prize! Woo-hoo. I'm so proud. Not._ I said sarcastically, raising an eyebrow. _But seriously, I'm sure that there are plenty of people who would just about die to know what you think about on a regular basis. Yusuke, for example._

_You wouldn't_. He said, starting to walk again.

_Oh, wouldn't I? I smirked. Let's see what you're thinking now…oh, my. You actually think about that stuff?! Honestly…_

_GET OUT OF MY HEAD!!!_ He screamed silently, whipping around to glare at me. I just smirked; I'd found my insurance.

"Sure, whatever…_shorty._" I said as I walked past him to join Kurama. Behind me, I could almost hear steam coming out of Hiei's ears as he fumed at me. I stopped and, whipping my hand up to grab the sword, I turned to smirk at Hiei's surprised face, only centimeters from my own. "I wouldn't try that if I were you." I told him sweetly. "You know, you really shouldn't play with sharp things; they could hurt someone. Here, let me take that for you." Despite his protests, I pulled the katana from Hiei's grip and twirled it around, keeping the short fire demon at bay with my free hand. "Hmm. Nice balance…beautiful workmanship…where'd you get it?"

"None of your business, baka!" He growled, still trying to get his sword back. I raised my eyebrow.

"Oh, really? Fine, then." With a flick of my wrist, I dissipated the sword into fine black ash. Hiei's eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets.

"YOU BAKA! WHAT DID YOU DO TO IT?!" He yelled, glaring murderous darts at me and drawing the attention of several other people in the park. I looked at him calmly.

"I didn't do anything to it." I told him. "It's back in its sheath, which happens to be on your belt. The ash was taken from a fire about a mile away. Sheesh."

He glanced down to see his sword hanging from his belt as if it had never moved. Glancing up at me, he said, "Hn," and walked over to lean against the tree, trying to cover his momentary thick-headedness. Nearby, Kurama had watched all this with a slightly bemused expression on his face. Now, he walked over to stand next to me, a slight smile on his face.

"Okay," he said. "If you're ready, let's go get Yusuke and Botan and go to Yusuke's house so you can meet the others." I nodded.

"Alright. C'mon, shorty." I started walking back to where Botan was sitting on a bench and Yusuke was intent on some pigeons nearby, having given up on finding Hiei long ago. "Hey, you guys! We found him! Let's go!" Yusuke looked up and grinned as he saw Hiei.

"Hey, you know, I think Hiei got up on the wrong side of the bed today." He said as we joined him. Then he slapped his head. "Oh, that's right, Hiei doesn't sleep in beds, he sleeps in trees! So he must have woken up on the wrong side of the branch. 'Course, he's always in a bad mood, so I really can't tell the difference. Still-" Botan slapped him on the head before Hiei could permanently separate Yusuke's head from his neck with his sword. "Ow!"

"Come on, you. Let's get back to your house." She said, grabbing his jacket and dragging him after her. The rest of us followed at a short distance, laughing as Yusuke tried to reason with the blue-haired grim reaper.


	5. Does Enma have a sister?

A/N: Sorry I haven't updated since posting the first four chapters, but I've been a bit busy with my other story. Anyway, I'm here now, SO REJOICE IN MY PRESENCE! ...Ahem. Right. I would like to let you all know that the Makai I refer to in this fanfic is completely copyrighted to moi, since I was unable to locate a map from the actual series to use. Any places mentioned have absolutely no basis in the actual storyline of YuYu Hakusho as written by Yoshihiro Togashi (which I have no claim on, sad though that may be on my part). Niether does Li-Sanya. And, actually, Li-Sanya's name is impossible in the Japanese language (no l's). I _did_ claim artistic liscense (and my right as a fanfic author) to make Suzaku and Sieryu Li's students, but they don't actually come into this story.

* * *

Shortly thereafter, we arrived at Yusuke's house, where we were greeted enthusiastically by a tall (rather ugly) dude with orange hair, two girls and a cute guy with a binky who seemed rather familiar. One of the girls, a brunette, immediately jumped on Yusuke, taking over from Botan, and I recognized her as Keiko, Yusuke's "girlfriend."

The other one, a tall girl with pale hair and red eyes to match Hiei's introduced herself as Yukina and, judging by how the tall guy was treating her, probably his girlfriend. Though, honestly, I just couldn't see anyone actually liking a guy like that. He turned out to be Kuwabara and, if I was to go by Hiei's muttered opinion, also a baka. Then the last guy started speaking and I realized why he looked familiar.

"Okay, so now that-" I jumped on him, cutting him off mid-sentence.

"Koenma!" I shrieked, bowling him over. "Long time, no see!"

"Ahhh!" He exclaimed. "Get off of me!" I reluctantly obeyed so that the ruler of the spirit world could get up and dust his pants off. "Now, just what do you think-" He cut himself off, looking at me as if he had just seen his dad, King Enma, do a hula. "Li-Sanya?" He asked, incredulous. I gave him a big grin.

"The one and only." I said. "Sooooo, what do you say to your long lost aunt…?" Koenma's face started to turn red.

"Uhhh…"

"A welcome back would suffice." I told him when it became apparent that he wouldn't say anything on his own.

"Uh, right. Uh, welcome back…" He said slowly, his face still pretty red. Then he turned back to the others, who had been staring at us in shock. I had even managed to get Hiei to look shocked again for the third time that day. Koenma coughed, embarrassed. "Ahem. Boys, this is my…aunt…Li-Sanya, the former queen of the Makai. She, uh, has been…missing…for the past five hundred years." Yusuke started to snigger and Koenma glared at him, cutting him off mid-snigger. "Ahem. Anyway, I came to give you guys your next mission."

"Aww…" Yusuke started to complain, forgetting about having just learned that Koenma had an aunt. "But we just got back and we're tired and hungry and thirsty and I wanna-" Koenma cut him off.

"And have I told you yet that you have to leave right away?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

Yusuke sighed. "No, but-"

"No buts." My nephew said firmly. "This mission is to find and destroy a rather powerful artifact that has the power to turn anything it's pointed at into stone."

Kurama piped up. "Like the Gorgon's gaze in human mythology?" he asked. Koenma nodded.

"Exactly. Except, this is no myth. It was stolen from the vaults a while ago and we need you to track it down, since our own attempts have failed. Now-" it was my turn to pipe in.

"Whoa, now. You mean to say that an artifact with this sort of power has been just sitting around in the treasure vaults?!" I exclaimed, shocked beyond belief. Something like that should have been destroyed at the earliest convenient time.

"Well, yeah. It's been scheduled for destruction for about two hundred years now, but we've just never gotten around to doing it. So I need you guys to locate it and destroy it before it destroys us!"

"So, uh, what does it look like?" Yusuke asked after a moment of awkward silence.

"It's an amulet with a single eye in the center on one side. The eye is usually shut, but if it opens, don't look at it. It will turn you to stone if you do and there's no known remedy to that. On the other side is an inscription saying-" I broke in again.

"Saying, 

'A cursed eye, a demon's wrath,

The queen's own law, a thief lord's whip.

Two humans and one who has taken life,

Traveling together for this trip.

Go now, past the haunting notes,

To where the Lord hold's sway.

Darkness will light the path,

A fire will show the way.

Now, queen, triumphant return,

Back to the one you hold dear.

The day has begun to dawn,

On the birth of a New Year.

Six shall go, six shall come,

But two will face the past long gone.

These two may not leave,

'Till old grievances are done.

Now tell me true, the answer you know,

What is given freely, stolen it can never be,

Taken in gratitude, held close to the heart.

Can soften a demon's heart and can never truly be seen.

More precious than gold, more beautiful than silver,

Both protection and a weapon, never seen in war,

Sometimes found when the other is gone,

Not even the purest evil can mar?'"

I finished my recitation and looked up at the others. They were all staring at me incredulously, Hiei included. I raised an eyebrow. "What? I had it in my possession for about 50 years and I deciphered it in my free time." Koenma shook his head.

"You had it deciphered and you never told us?" He asked painfully slowly. "Do you know how long it took us to track down the manuscripts to decipher it?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I've got a fair idea. I did hide them fairly well, didn't I?" Once again, Koenma shaking his head crashed my good mood.

"You're hopeless." He muttered. Then he looked back up to the boys. "Okay, slight change. Take Li-Sanya with you. She might prove to be helpful along the trip and she might even have some clues to the amulet's location." Kuwabara raised his hand. "Yes, Kuwabara?"

"Uh…do we have to go to the demon world again?" he asked apprehensively. Koenma sighed.

"I don't know. It depends on where the amulet is. If it's in the Makai, then you'll have to go there. If not, then you won't. Understand?"

"Uhh…yeah."

"Okay, then. As soon as you are rested, well fed and fit, you may begin looking for the amulet. I can only urge you to find it quickly." He said before disappearing with a –poof-. We all stood there for a moment in silence, and then Yusuke sighed.

"Well, that's that. Who's hungry?" He looked around the room at the others expectantly. Keiko reached over and slapped him. "Ow! What was that for?"

"Trust you to only think of your belly at a time like this." She said with an exasperated sigh. I grinned, but decided to side with Yusuke on this one.

"Well, he has a point." I said. "I could do with some food and a soft bed, as well." A sudden yawn emphasized my last remark. "Food first, though."

"Well, we'll need to go back to the mansion, then. I'm afraid that with this group, we won't be able to stay here." Kurama said. "I can make lunch there." I looked at him, slightly surprised that he could cook at all. _Well, guess that'll teach you to judge by looks alone, huh?_ I thought to myself. Then I looked at Hiei and decided that maybe looks weren't so deceiving after all. He glanced over at me.

"I heard that, you know." He said as the others all started to troop outside again. I smirked slightly as I followed.

"I know. You were supposed to hear it." I said as I closed the door behind me. In front of me, Botan was manipulating a small watch-like thing on her wrist.

"There!" She exclaimed, finally succeeding at whatever she was doing. Everyone looked up expectantly and a moment later a large multi-colored portal appeared in front of the group. We all stepped through and I gasped slightly.

We came out at the base of a hill on a narrow road that wound up the hillside to a large mansion. The mansion had three stories built of a pinkish stone, probably granite, and had a ton of windows on the side facing us alone. I lost count at about 238, or maybe it was 239…Either way, there were a ton of windows. A few moments later, we were at the front door and I was about ready to pass out from all of the physical and spiritual exercise I had done that day. I was in such a bad way that I didn't even notice Hiei enter my mind for a moment. I did notice it when he stayed behind and watched me, though, as the others went ahead.

I glared at him. "What do you want, shorty?" He shrugged.

"Nothing." He said, looking away. I raised an eyebrow.

"Uh-huh. Now, really, what do you want?" I said, not in the best of moods. He glanced back at me.

"I told you. I don't want anything." He repeated.

"Then why are you waiting for me?" I asked. Hiei looked away again.

"Not for you, that's for sure." I raised my other eyebrow. "I just don't want Kurama harping at me about leaving you on your own, especially in the condition you're in. He's worse than a mother that way." He admitted, crossing his arms. I blinked, then shrugged.

"I'm not that worn out and I don't recall asking for your assistance, so you can go ahead." I said, standing up straight and starting to walk past him. Just as I drew even with him, though, my sight blurred and I fell to one side, unfortunately, the side Hiei was on. Startled, he barely managed to catch me. I blinked up at him. "Then again, I seem to need a shoulder to balance against." He sighed and hauled me back upright.

"Come on, baka." He said, leading me down the hall after the others. "No sense in both of us starving because of you."

In the kitchen, I gratefully collapsed in a chair and looked eagerly at Kurama, who was just turning from the stove with a pan. He placed it in front of me and said, "Dig in." I promptly obeyed. Everyone around me did as well. Soon, the only ones still eating were Yusuke, Kuwabara and myself. All the others were staring at me in shock.

"Where does she put it all…?" Keiko muttered to Yukina. "I mean, Yusuke and Kuwabara I can understand; they're boys. But her…" The taller girl just nodded, wide eyed. Shortly, though, even I got full. I started to stand, but ended up back in my seat as a gigantic yawn escaped.

"Oh, my. Excuse me." I said, blinking sleepily. "I think a bed is next?" I asked hopefully. Kurama nodded.

"Yup. Do you want me to show you to the room you'll be staying in?" He asked politely.

"Sure; I get the feeling that if I tried to find it, I'd be lost for the rest of my life, however long that is." I replied gratefully. It was true; from what I'd seen, the mansion was a veritable maze of hallways, rooms and stairs. He helped me stand and guided me out of the kitchen and up two flights of stairs. By the time he stopped me in front of a door, I was practically yawning my head off and I'd resorted to leaning my head on his shoulder, not a thought crossing my mind of how he would react. Had I been paying attention, I might have seen his rather red face, though, considering the fact that if I wasn't in the condition I was I probably wouldn't have been in a position to do that at all…

"Here we are." He said, opening the door. I more or less collapsed on the large bed, sighing as my head hit the pillows.

"Thanks, Kurama." I said sleepily, closing my eyes. "You're not at all like I'd imagined you'd be from the rumors."

He paused as he walked to the door. "The rumors?"

"Yeah. The rumors had you as a cruel, heartless thief lord." I told him, completely missing his shocked expression. "So far, I haven't seen a single sign of that in you. Though of course, I really don't know you all that well yet…" I yawned again. "Ask me more about it tomorrow. I'm going to go to sleep now. Good night, Kurama." I rolled over and was asleep almost instantaneously. Kurama closed the door softly behind him.

"Good night, Li."

When I woke up, I didn't know where I was at first. The sun was shining through the window on gray walls and red and black pillows surrounded me. Then I remembered and came wide-awake. I had met team Urameshi and had gone with them to stay at their mansion. Kurama had shown me to this room last night. Slipping out of bed, I decided to find out what the walk-in closet held before checking out the bathroom.

Inside the closet, I was rather surprised to find a ton of tops and bottoms that could have been taken straight from my old wardrobe, back when I was queen. Finally choosing a dark green tank top and maroon capris, I went into the bathroom to find a large bath equipped with scents and other accessories and the fluffiest towels I'd ever seen in my entire life (approximately 4,923 years, give or take a few, so the towels were just about heavenly.).

A half-hour later, I emerged from the bathroom feeling much better and dressed in the new outfit. Digging through the jewelry box on the dresser, I located a thin choker with a garnet and opal pendant that complemented the outfit perfectly. Just as I finished putting it around my neck, someone knocked on my door. Opening it, I saw Kurama, dressed (as usual) in a red uniform-like outfit. I smiled at him.

"Perfect timing; I just finished getting ready." I told him. "Is breakfast ready?"

He nodded. "Yes, I came to show you the way, seeing as you probably weren't paying much attention last night." I sighed.

"Yeah, you're right. Still, you can't expect someone who'd been up for about 32 hours straight to not be a _bit_ tired." I said wryly, following him out into the hall. He laughed.

"True." He said, leading the way down the hall. We were quiet for a moment, and then I opened my mouth hesitantly.

"Kurama…"

"Yes, Li?" He said, turning to look at me. I stopped and he did so as well. "Is anything wrong?"

I shook my head. "No, not precisely." I reassured him. "It's about this mission."

"What about it?"

"You know that verse I recited yesterday?"

"Yes. What about it?" He frowned slightly, confused.

"Well," I took a deep breath. "It's really a prophecy about the amulet and something that's supposed to happen to it. I…I didn't want to say anything before, in case Koenma said something, but now I think it may help us." Kurama was silent a moment, a thoughtful look on his face. Then he looked up and searched my face intently.

"So, you're saying that this verse-prophecy-can help us find the amulet?" He asked. I nodded slightly.

"Yes, though I'm not entirely sure how. There do seem to be people mentioned in it, though…" I trailed off, suddenly aware of how silly it must sound, me prattling on about something as vague as a verse from the back of an amulet that's supposedly a prophecy. "I'm sorry. You must think me an idiot. Sorry to bother you. We should probably get to breakfast." I turned away from him slightly, my eyes downcast. I heard Kurama sigh and felt a light touch on my shoulder.

"Li. You are not an idiot." He said softly. I glanced up to see his green eyes looking at me worriedly. "If anything, you are the smartest person I know. Now, I've only known you for all of about a day, but I already know that you don't talk seriously about something you don't think is a serious matter. If you think this prophecy will help us, then there's a strong possibility it will. So don't think it's silly to bring it, or anything, up if you think it could be of assistance. Alright?" He raised his eyebrows slightly and I smiled weakly.

"Alright. And…thank you, Kurama." I replied quietly. He squeezed my shoulder before letting go.

"You're welcome. Now, how about some breakfast? We can tell the others about the verse later." I nodded and we set off down the hall again.

After breakfast, which had been scrambled eggs, toast and sausage, we all found our way into the living room, where we each sat down to do our own thing. Or not, in Hiei's case, since he just sat down on the window seat and stared out the window as if it was the most fascinating thing he had ever seen. Kurama grabbed a book he'd apparently had been reading and continued somewhere in the middle. Yusuke and Kuwabara immediately raced to the video games and TV, which they then proceeded to stare at intensely as they made their characters beat each other up. Keiko and Yukina went over to cheer on their respective boys, and Botan disappeared to Koenma's. I hung back for a moment before crossing the room to look over one of the bookshelves. Running my finger over the spines of the books as I browsed, I tilted my head to one side so I could read the writing.

"Let's see…read that already…that was a boring one…" I muttered to myself as I walked down the length of the shelf. Turning, I started back the way I'd come, on a different shelf. "Hmm…that might do…oh! I haven't read this one!" Stopping, I pulled the book off the shelf and blew the dust off the cover. _It hasn't been read in a long time,_ I thought, looking at the title. _Jesa's Guide to the Makai and the Artifacts and Persons Found Therein. Huh. Certainly a long title. Wonder what's inside?_ Curious, I sat down in one of the nearby chairs and set the book on my lap.

* * *

I'd have to agree with Li on this one. That is certainly a long title I came up with. This book is also completely made up from my mind and if you would like to have a (nonmagical) copy, let me know and I'll get it to you...somehow...

On a different note, I love to be told how I'm doing. This whole story's already written out, so reviews aren't necessary, just appreciated. Even so, I would _love_ to get feedback from readers, if only to let me know that I'm not completely ignored and hated.

Anyway, I've gotta go, so Happy Father's Day and adios!

Haliaetus.


	6. Reasons of Logic

A/N: Chapter 6 is here! So we've met almost the entire cast of characters, but so far, almost no action. That comes later. Anyway, I've noticed that since i wrote this on Word, it looks and reads a lot better if you use that rather than this site, but whatever. You'll just have to deal with reading long paragraphs. A quick note from me to you: I have a tendency to switch POVs during this fic, which I've stopped doing in my other stories (at least not as much), but you'll have to pay a bit closer attention. Italics are thoughts, if you haven't picked up on that yet and I still have absolutely no ownage of YuYu Hakusho. Now read.

* * *

(Hiei's POV) 

Hearing Li-Sanya's thoughts as she broad-casted them unconsciously, I turned from looking out the window to see her sit down in a chair with a thick, leather bound volume. I stared at it for a second, then suddenly realized what it was. As she moved to open the cover, a strangled shout came from what I barely recognized as me.

"No!" She looked up, startled, and stared at me, her shock clearly written over her face. Kurama also looked up at me, confused. Then again, he couldn't read her mind, so he had an excuse for being confused. I continued to stare at Li-Sanya. "No." I repeated, a little more calmly. "Don't open that book."

She glanced down at the book she held in her lap. Kurama also looked at the book. His eyebrows suddenly shot up as he, too, realized what it was.

"Why not?" She asked innocently. I sighed mentally, wondering how in Makai she didn't know what the book was, when I knew she was at least 3,ooo years old. Older than the book, anyway.

"Don't you know anything?" I said impatiently, feeling as if I was talking to a particularly dense five year-old. "That book is a census of all the beings in the Makai as well as all of the magical items ever crafted there, and their status. It's extremely dangerous to look at it, let alone use it. The author died shortly after finishing the spells to create it." I told her. Now everyone was looking between Li-Sanya and I, including Yusuke and Kuwabara who didn't even glance down when one of the animated characters on the screen died.

"Oh. Is that it?" She said finally, after staring at the book for a moment. She looked back up at me. "I mean, honestly, I've handled stones with more power than this."

I sighed; she still wasn't getting it. Kurama seemed to finally be with the program, though, as he was looking at Li-Sanya with a worried expression. Briefly, I wondered exactly how he felt towards her, but I had to push that thought aside to deal with the more immediate problem of preventing Li-Sanya from reading that volume.

"You may have." I conceded. "But you had all of your power then, and you don't now. That makes a big difference. If you had all your power, I wouldn't be so worried for your life." I said flatly. Suddenly, what I'd just said hit me. I blinked. "That was a figure of speech." I added, trying to mask my slip-up. Yusuke caught it though, as did Kurama, and I knew I would hear no end of it, if not from Kurama, then definitely from the idiot. Li-Sanya hadn't caught it, though, and I gave a silent, relieved sigh.

"Oh." Was all she said before getting up and replacing it on the shelf. I watched her slightly nervously until she sat down again with a different book and started reading. Glancing around, I saw the two humans return to their game, as did the girls. Kurama was staring at me, and I raised an eyebrow.

_What?_ I asked silently, not wanting to draw attention to our conversation.

_Nothing much_. He replied. _Just…you seemed really concerned about her._

_Oh, and I suppose you'd be the expert?_ I said sarcastically, wanting to end this conversation, but unable to do so without him getting suspicious.

_No, I'm not, but I know you and you really don't hide it well when you're truly worried about someone. At least, it seems that way to me. Others may think you're just the same, regardless._ He said calmly. I was silent for a moment, trying to think of a response to that.

_Well, it's not as if I'm the one with a fairly major crush on her._ I said finally, smirking slightly as Kurama's face turned a rather bright shade of red. _You know, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you've been spending too much time around those roses of yours; you're starting to look a lot like them._ I continued, pleased that my hunch had been correct.

_How did you-no, never mind. I don't want to know how you know._ He said after several attempts. _Still, leave the roses out of it; they haven't done anything to you._

_No? How about that time I was sent to find you and they decided you'd be better off without me, so they tried to make me part of their fertilizer?_

_Well…there was that one time…_

_Or that time when-_ He interrupted me by snapping his book closed and standing up. Just then, the grandfather clock out in the main hall chimed the hour and he seized the opportunity.

"Okay, you guys. It's nine o'clock, time for training." He said, causing the others to groan. Yusuke turned from the TV to face Kurama.

"Aww, Kurama! Do we have to?" He complained, trying to give the redhead a puppy dog look and failing.

"Yes, we have to." He replied firmly. The two humans got up slowly and, still protesting went out of the room. I also got up and started to leave the room, but I paused before I went by Kurama. Looking up at him, I raised an eyebrow.

"You may have avoided it this time, but I'll get you later, you know." You told him quietly enough that the girls wouldn't hear. He glanced down at me.

"Hmm. Maybe. But of course, I'm not the one who wants only to use her to get what I want, either." He shot back in a casual tone. I froze as I felt my face heat up. How had he known…?

"That's none of your business!" I hissed, storming out of the room.

(Li-Sanya's POV)

I glanced up, slightly startled, as Kurama snapped his book shut and got up and announced that they were going to be training. Yusuke and Kuwabara left, complaining about how unfair it was, and Hiei started to leave, but stopped and talked to Kurama for a moment. Kurama said something I couldn't quite make out, but it obviously hit one of Hiei's nerves, because he hissed a reply and stormed out of the room.

I came up behind Kurama. "What was that all about?" I asked, looking out the door after Hiei. He spun to look at me, startled.

"Oh, Li. That? Oh, nothing. Just Hiei being Hiei." He said by way of explanation. I raised an eyebrow; somehow, I got the feeling he wasn't telling the whole truth. Deciding not to investigate right now, I looked at him hopefully.

"Could I come watch you guys train?" He paused to think before nodding.

"Sure. I'll show you the way, since I'm going there right away." He said. "Come on, it's this way."

As he led me down several hallways and down a flight of steps, I stared at his back, wondering what he'd said to Hiei to make the fire demon flip like that. From what I'd seen, Hiei generally kept his emotions under tight control, except for his temper, which always seemed to be just on the breaking point. Making a decision to find out as soon as possible, I carefully slipped into Kurama's mind to figure out what he was thinking about. Luck was on my side, as I found him (presumably) thinking about what Hiei and he had been talking about.

_He's probably wondering how I knew his secret. He should know by now that if I want to find something out, I can one way or another. Still, he was right about one thing; I do seem to be feeling more than just friendship for her…Youko would probably even go so far as to say I'm falling in love with her, but his opinion doesn't matter right now, considering he isn't here… _

Just then, another voice started talking in Kurama's head and I nearly pulled out in surprise, but stayed in at the last minute to hear what the newcomer had to say. _What do you mean I'm not here? I'm always here, in case you've forgotten. Hiei's right, you really do have your head all messed up from thinking about that silly cat demoness. _(Here, my eyes went wide at the reference to me and I listened closer)_ It's not as if she's even your species, anyway. Though, she did have a good point with the prophecy, I'll give her that. Of course, I would have noticed it sooner or later; she just beat me to it…_

_Oh, shut up, Youko. _Kurama said wearily. _If you really don't like her that much, then tell her yourself later, but keep your opinion out of my thoughts._

_Fine. I will. But don't come crying to me when she chooses someone else because you were too afraid to make the first move. _Then Youko's voice was gone. I heard Kurama sigh. I pulled out of his mind just as he stopped in front of a large door made of solid oak and coated in protective charms and spells to keep it from being destroyed.

"Here we are." He said, turning to me. He opened the door and gestured for me to go through first. Complying, I stepped into a large room with a sawdust floor. Around the edges were benches and in the center was a large ring circled by a two-foot tall wooden fence. Across the room, I could see several racks of various training weapons, spanning from swords to spears to small throwing knives and everything in between.

Just as I took a seat on one of the benches, the door opened and Yusuke and Kuwabara entered, arguing about something or other. I watched, bemused, as they started throwing punches and kicks at each other. Finally, it just erupted into an all out fight. I was so absorbed in watching them fight that I didn't even notice Hiei come up next to me. Then he spoke and I nearly fell off the bench in surprise.

"So, Kurama let you come as well?" He said, sullen as ever. I gripped the bench edge tightly as I turned to glare at him.

"Yes, but I'm just watching." I informed him. "And why do you always have to be so quiet? It gets annoying sometimes."

"Hn." Just then Kurama decided to settle Yusuke and Kuwabara's fight once and for all. He stepped forward and, waiting just a split second, reached out and grabbed them both by the collar of their shirts, hauling them apart and holding them up.

"Okay, you guys, training time." He said, setting them down again. I watched as he went to one side of the enclosed circle and turned to face them. "You two can go first." They groaned, but obeyed and jumped over the short fence to take fighting stances facing each other. Kurama continued with the rules. "No spiritual energy allowed, otherwise, anything goes. A count of five will be used to determine out of bounds and the end of the match." He raised an arm and checked to make sure they were ready. "Ready?…Go!" He brought his hand down in a swishing motion and they charged forward towards each other.

For a while, the two humans were equally matched, each giving their best to knock the other out or out of bounds. As I watched, I realized for the first time how really powerful they were. Then I berated myself for having underestimated them. _Silly, of course they'd be strong. What did you expect, after they beat Suzaku and Seiryu, your best students?_ I was watching the boys and caught up in my own thoughts so much that I didn't notice Hiei's startled look as he read my mind. I did catch the odd glance he cast at me, but dismissed it as just Hiei being Hiei and glared at him. Just then, Yusuke caught Kuwabara in the jaw with a hard left uppercut that sent the taller boy sailing out of the arena to land heavily on the sawdust floor. I turned back to see if he would get up and continue fighting; Kurama had started the count as soon as he had landed.

"One…two…three…four…five." He called. "Kuwabara is out and Yusuke is the winner. Next match, myself against Yusuke. Hiei, will you judge?"

"Hn." The fire demon replied, going over to take Kurama's place. "Listen up, bakas, I'm only going to say this once. This match is Yusuke against Kurama, all attacks are permitted and you are allowed access to any weapon on the wall as long as you get it within the five counts. Ready?" The two opponents nodded, watching each other. "Then…GO!" He stood there, watching as the two started circling, Kurama holding one hand under his long red hair and Yusuke tightening one hand into a fist.

Then Kurama pulled out a rose. I stared at it for a moment, confused, before I realized it was a weapon. Yusuke narrowed his eyes slightly and tightened his fist. Kurama whipped his arm to the side, the rose transforming into a long thorny whip that cut through the air to catch Yusuke in the arm, leaving a long shallow cut. The human winced and bit his lip, but didn't stop from the pain.

Suddenly, I realized Yusuke's fist was glowing and I frowned, unsure of what this attack was. Kurama seemed to know, though, and watched it intently, tensing as if to jump out of the way. Bringing his fist up slowly, Yusuke turned at an angle to Kurama, keeping his eyes on him and still circling. All of a sudden, a bright ball of energy shot from his hand to speed towards Kurama, who dodged to the right. What the fox demon didn't seem to expect though, was that the ball of energy would twist and come after him, as if it had a life of its own. Wide eyed, he dodged back to the left, the bright sphere following him. He slashed at it with his whip, but it did nothing to the purely energy attack. That split second cost him, though, and the ball sped up to connect with his chest in an explosion that tossed the demon out of the ring.

Kurama lay on the sawdust floor for a moment before propping himself up on one of his elbows. Looking over to where Yusuke was still standing, he grinned wryly. "Well, I didn't know you could do that." He said, standing up slowly. Yusuke grinned back.

"Yep. I've been trying to do what that kid did at the tournament." He replied with a smug look.

I perked up at the mention of a tournament. Had they been in the previous Dark Tournament? I could recall my own participation in the Tournament, almost a thousand years ago now, and the team of five we'd had. There had been me, an ice demon named Toya, a shape-shifting earth spirit with a dual personality named Shiki or Hyaku, depending on which one he was, Kugo the always cheerful (and mischievous) fire demon, and Niseka, the cunning black kitsune healer of the group. All of us had been closer than siblings; after ten years together, we knew each other as well as we knew ourselves. We had been the champions for a decade running and were trying for our eleventh year, against the other final eight teams. One of those teams had had two young up-and-coming demons with exceptional powers. It was mainly by my adaptation powers and a broad streak of luck that we managed to defeat them at all. They had stuck around, though, to watch us to the end, where we narrowly beat the last team to become the champions again. Afterwards, they came to me, wanting me to teach them more about their powers and how to use them. I liked their spirit, both of them wanting to become stronger, so I consented and we spent the next two decades together, getting to know each other and me helping them to strengthen their already quite formidable powers. Finally, though, we went our separate ways, they to find their own niche in the Makai and me to begin my ascension to the Makai throne. I never saw them again, but I thought about them often. Then came the day when I had to flee my palace before someone found out about my reduced powers. I wandered around the Makai, trying to become one of the simpler demons again, but failing because of my personality and unconscious attitude.

About two years ago, I had finally heard some news concerning my previous students. They had joined up with two other demons with powers similar to their own and had risen in the ranks to become the top demons in their area. Because of their ambitions, though, the ruler of the spirit world had sealed off that part of the Makai from the Ningenkai. They had still found ways to infiltrate the human world, though, and it had become desperate enough that Koenma had had to send his spirit detectives, along with a couple of demons as back-up, to take care of the situation once and for all. After a hard trial, one of them, a fire demon, had beaten Seiryu, one of my students, and one of the humans had beaten Suzaku, my other student. A little careful investigation had revealed their identities, Hiei Jaganshi and Yusuke Urameshi. I had been a close friend of one of Koenma's assistants, the grim reaper, Botan, for a while, so I pulled a few strings and found out where they were. With a bit of time manipulation, I found out even more about how Yusuke had risen so quickly from a simple human to one of the most feared in the Makai, as well as the most wanted. It was during one of these trips that I actually witnessed my students' downfall. Now, though, here I was, making friends with the very same people.

A slight whistling, my only warning of what was coming, interrupted my thoughts. Almost automatically, I raised a small shield to deflect the attack and send it back the way it had come. Looking up, I glanced around at the boys staring at me. Sometime during the time I had been lost in thought, Kuwabara had woken back up and he now stood next to Yusuke, who was staring at me with a raised eyebrow and a smoking arm where the attack had hit him after reflecting. Hiei was also staring at me, but it seemed more like a glare, which, on second thought, it probably was. Then there was Kurama, or rather, whom I had to assume was Kurama. The red haired, green-eyed boy I knew had been replaced by a tall fox demon dressed in white with long silver hair and slanted silver eyes, a lot like my own.

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A/N: Okay, that third and second to last paragraph had a ton of information that really has no correlation with this story except as background for Li, how she had known who the guys were (ish) and an intro for characters in the sequel. It also makes no sense whatsoever if you actually take the time to digest it, so I suggest you don't. 

On a different note, I'd like to thank Luca4ever for the review! I hope to hear from the rest of you I know are reading this! In the meantime, I'll prepare the next chapter, 'cause I'm not mean and hold chapters hostage for reviews. Though, if you want the chapters faster, reviews seem to help with that...

Haliaetus out.


	7. It's Just a Kiss

A/N: Enter Youko and a whole lot of trouble. Thank you to those of you who have reviewed (Luca4ever and Rose of the Moon) and I hope to hear from more of you guys! In the meantime, I have yet to acquire the copyrights to YuYu Hakusho, so I don't own it (and probably never will unless I travel to a far dimension and somehow miraculously get the copyrights). Now, read this magnificent fanfiction I have written for your purusing enjoyment.

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I stood, still looking at this newcomer, my brain working furiously to figure out who he was. Then it clicked. "Youko, I presume?" I said, raising one eyebrow. The others all raised their eyebrows and looked at the fox demon, surprised. Youko just smiled and inclined his head, keeping his eyes on me.

"You presume correctly." He said, his voice low and smooth as silk. He continued. "And may I presume you knew this because you read Kurama's mind earlier?"

I shrugged indifferently. "You may presume what you wish." I paused, and frowned slightly. "Does Kurama have any consciousness of this conversation?" I asked, changing the subject.

"Not unless I tell him about it." Came Youko's reply. I nodded; I'd figured as much, since it was the norm for the split personality effect, or what ever it should be called. Still, there were exceptions. Before I could ask him another question, he turned with a slight frown to the others, who were still standing there, Yusuke and Kuwabara flabbergasted and Hiei looking bored as usual. "Might I ask that all three of you step out for a time while I speak with Her Highness?" He asked politely but firmly, a hint of steel in his voice. Yusuke and Kuwabara started, then nodded and raced out the door, obviously not wanting to anger Youko. Hiei looked at Youko for a moment before nodding. He had a few words for the fox demon before he left, however.

"Don't scare her off, Youko." He said. "I'm not sure Kurama would ever forgive you for that." He said, pausing in the doorway. Youko smirked.

"Oh, and like you would?" He asked lightly, and I got the feeling that this had some deeper connotations that I was as yet unaware of. Hiei didn't bother answering as he left and this was apparently significant to Youko, because he gave a slight chuckle before turning back to me.

"So, Li-Sanya, we meet for the first time, though we both have heard of the other." I nodded; that about summed it up. I, of course, had heard of the famous thief king that had eluded capture for hundreds of years, and he most definitely had heard about his former monarch. I decided to get to the point.

"Yes. Now, what did you want to talk to me about?" I put my hands on my hips, indicating that I didn't want any nonsense from him. He smiled slightly.

"Well, you should already know one reason." He started. "But there is another reason for me wanting to talk to you." He paused before continuing in a slightly pleading tone of voice. "I've already gotten the stuff you told Kurama earlier when you two first met, but I'm still curious about something." He hesitated and I raised an eyebrow again.

"What?" I asked, curious despite myself.

"Well…what the last key is, actually." He said a little sheepishly. I blinked, surprised. Then what he'd said hit me, and I scowled slightly.

"That…is classified information." I informed him, turning away slightly. "And I doubt you'd be able to meet the requirements, anyway. It's not something I see the king of thieves doing." I glanced sideways at him. "Now, if that's all…?"

Youko sighed. "No, that's not all. I want you to fight me." He said, crossing his arms stubbornly. I turned to face him again.

"Uh-huh." I said. "So, you want to fight me and get your butt kicked?" I asked, oddly excited at the prospect of fighting him. He laughed.

"No, I don't think that will happen." He said, chuckling. "In case you've forgotten, you no longer have all of your power. You are now down to my level, if not lower."

I smirked, though the remark stung. "Really? Shall we test that theory?"

"I'd love to." He said, also smirking slightly. I jumped over the fence into the ring and he did likewise. We took similar fighting stances facing each other. "I will assume we both know the rules? A count of five seconds for out of bounds and the end of the match, any weapons as long as you get them within the five-second count if they're outside the arena. Otherwise, everything goes." I raised my eyebrows as something occurred to me.

"How about we raise the stakes?" I said. He frowned at me, confused.

"What do you mean?"

"Like if I win, then you have to be at my beck and call for the rest of the day." He grinned.

"Sure. And if I win, you have to do whatever I tell you to for the rest of the day." He said

"Fine with me." I said, grinning.

"Good. Ready? Then…GO!"

I immediately shifted back to my semi-natural form; the one I hadn't shown anyone in about 486 years. My shoulder-length black hair became silver and my dark brown eyes followed suit, becoming a molten silver with slit pupils. A long tail appeared and my ears flowed into two pointed feline ears that sat on the top of my head. Both were a silver gray with black tips. As I grinned, two sharp fangs were revealed.

Looking over to Youko, I was pleased to see that my transformation had caught him by surprise. "You didn't expect me to have changed my actual form, did you?" I teased. "Well, you should feel honored; I haven't used this form for about 500 years. You're the first I've shown it to since then." He blinked, then grinned back.

"Maybe you aren't as silly as I first thought." He said, edging to one side. I glanced at him.

"Nuh-uh-uh." I said, skipping out of range. "I've seen that one before; it won't work now." I laughed, and decided to try something new. Clenching one of my hands into a fist, I concentrated on focusing my spiritual energy in it. Being careful to hide it from him, I circled around the edge of the arena, still smiling. Youko circled around with me, staying on the opposite side of the arena from me. As I came around with the weapons wall behind me, I decided to let it loose. Bringing my fist around as if to punch him, I shot the energy ball towards Youko. He paused, startled that I had been able to use Yusuke's attack. That second cost him, as the attack blasted him against the wooden divider.

He stood up slowly, holding his side, and glanced up at me with a half-smile. "Nice. Nice. I wasn't expecting that from you. Guess the rumors are true, then; you really do have the ability to use any move you've seen." My grin broadened.

"Of course. Did you ever doubt them?" I asked, in my element. He grinned back.

"No, not really." He said slowly, not moving to attack. "Then again, I didn't expect the queen of the Makai to be so careless, either." Suddenly the hairs on the back of my neck stood up stiff and I whipped around, but I was too late, the plant had wrapped its tendrils around me, effectively preventing me from using my arms or legs. It held me there as Youko came over to look down at me.

"Well, well, look what I caught, a cocky little kitten." He said sarcastically. I glared up at him.

"Yeah, you just keep thinking about how great you are." I hissed, thoroughly ticked off now. "Maybe it'll save your tail someday." His eyes went wide, but the attack was already in place and he couldn't escape even if he wanted to. The snake made up entirely of my spiritual energy rose up and hissed at him, revealing four fangs, each about a foot long. Rocking back, it struck, grabbing the fox demon by his bushy tail, lifting him up off the floor of the arena. I laughed at the outraged look on his face.

"Oh, I'm sorry, was the tail off limits?" I asked innocently as the plant gently set me down on the arena floor. I patted it and it drew back out of the arena. Walking over, I patted Youko's face, hanging down at my level. "Now, you just hang in there for just a moment more…" He growled and snapped at my fingers, unable to do anything else. I slapped him. "Bad boy! Do not snap at me!" The snake accented my words with a slight shake of its head, causing Youko to yelp. As he swung back around, though, he had a broad grin on his face.

"I'll wipe that smug grin off your face." He said. I frowned, suddenly suspicious of the fox demon.

"I'd like to see you try." I retorted. He just grinned even more and closed his eyes, as if to concentrate. Suddenly, there was a large explosion. I was thrown backwards out of the arena to hit the wall; I felt my snake dissipate almost instantly. Out of the smoke and dust that had risen from the sawdust floor came the tall figure of Youko. He knelt down next to where I was laying, stunned and unable to do anything except look at him, and more or less sat on me, pinning my legs down and holding my hands apart to prevent me from using them. I blinked up at him as he brought his face down close to mine.

"This round is mine." He whispered, his breath warm on my face. "You know, Kurama's right. You are pretty cute. Now, what to make you do?" I blinked, momentarily confused by the unrelated subjects. Then I remembered the stakes I had instigated before we had started the fight. Groaning inwardly, I smiled slightly up at him.

"Well, I'm sure you can think of something sooner or later." I said. "Now, how about letting me up?" My question seemed to give him an idea, because his face lit up and he smirked mischievously down into my face.

"I know. You have to kiss Kurama." He seemed very pleased with this idea, but I was not so enthusiastic. If Kurama had feelings for me beyond just friendship, then this order might have more consequences than Youko knew.

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A/N: Sorry it was a bit of a short chapter, but I had to break off at this point. You'll understand when I post the next chapter. In the meantime, can anyone figure out why Li would be so worried about a kiss?

See you soon!

Haliaetus.


	8. Lunch in the Woods

A/N: Part two of the Kiss of Death! Just kidding, but this _is_ where you find out what happens when Li kisses Kurama. We also find out about the antagonist in this story, but he won't make a personal appearance for another couple of chapters.

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"I don't think that's the best idea…" I started, but he cut me off.

"Nonsense. You have to do what I tell you, and I'm telling you to kiss Kurama. No arguments." He smiled one last time, then I had to close my eyes as he disappeared in a bright light, leaving a rather confused Kurama looking down at me. I sighed.

"I'm sorry about this, Kurama. I'll explain everything later." I told him. Then I brought my face up and gently met his lips with mine. For a moment, nothing happened; Kurama was too shocked to do anything. Then he realized what was happening, and he started to draw back, but seemed to change his mind and pressed forward. Inside, I was screaming against it, but I had to do it; my pride wouldn't let me do otherwise.

Suddenly, my body started to convulse and I drew back sharply. Kurama frowned down at me, even more confused. I turned my face away and closed my eyes as spasms wracked through my body more and more often. I heard Youko's voice and figured he'd been paying attention to Kurama's thoughts to make sure I'd done what he'd told me to and so had known when I'd started to convulse.

"Li-Sanya! Li!" His voice was telling me to respond; to tell him what was going on, but it faded into a loud ringing sound that covered every other noise. I felt the bands on my wrists start to crumble away and as they did, I felt my power surging back into me. It was raw and uncontrolled and it rushed through my veins like molten fire. This went on for an undeterminable amount of time; it seemed like just seconds at one point and long centuries at another. Finally, though, the newly released power settled back into the space it had occupied over five hundred years ago, making me whole again.

I opened my eyes slowly, unsure of what I'd find. To my surprise, I was still on the arena floor, sawdust gently tickling my cheek. From where I was lying, I could see the feet of about four or five different people. Groaning, I rolled over to look up at their faces. Yusuke, Yukina, Keiko, Botan and Youko were looking down at me worriedly. Kuwabara was further off, while Hiei was leaning against the wall. I focused on Youko, though.

"I told you it wasn't the best idea." I said, my voice raspy and hoarse, as if I'd been shouting too much. With help from Keiko and Yukina, I sat up against the wall. Closing my eyes, I asked, "Did anything change?" Yusuke answered.

"Yeah, your hair is…blondish-gold, and your eyes are gold, too." He said matter-of-factly. I cracked an eye open to look up at him.

"That's all?"

"Yup, unless you've changed in ways we can't see." He grinned and Keiko hit him on the back of his head. I smiled weakly.

"That's all that should have changed. This is my natural coloring, anyway." Youko finally couldn't contain his curiosity and leaned forward.

"What exactly happened there?" he asked. "All you did was kiss Kurama." Everyone looked at him, startled. Hiei in particular looked shocked and I remembered that he'd been the one who had cast the curse, so he probably knew what the final key had been, meaning he knew what had happened. I sighed.

"Smooth, Youko. Announce it to the whole world, why don't you?" I said sarcastically. "In answer to your question, do you remember when you asked me about what would release the rest of my power?" He nodded, so I continued. "Well, that thing was a kiss." He scowled.

"But if that's all, you could have done that at any time you wanted to!" He exclaimed. I shook my head.

"But it's not all there is." I said. "The kiss had to be willing on my part, and desired on the part of the other. Just going up to someone and kissing him wouldn't have worked. Besides, it had to be a demon and, knowing my kind like I do, that was nearly impossible. The only way it would have been possible was if that demon let himself open to human emotions, namely love." What I was saying suddenly dawned on Youko.

"Then…Kurama…" I nodded.

"Yes and that's exactly why I didn't want to do it." I said tiredly. "I didn't want to do it until I was positive of his feelings toward me. Though," I added wryly, "It seems at least that is crystal clear now." Next to Youko, Yusuke scratched his head.

"I still don't get it." He complained. Keiko sighed and hit him again.

"Forget it." She told him. "It's not something you would be interested in anyway.

"Oh, okay."

Youko stood up. "Well, if that's all, you should probably rest, Li." I glanced up at him, not missing the fact that he used Kurama's shortening of my name for me. He didn't seem to notice the glance, though, and started to herd the others out of the training room. Once they were all out, he returned and knelt down next to me. Looking up at him, I was surprised to see a concerned expression on his face. My heart softened and I smiled slightly.

"I'll be fine, Youko." I said softly, reaching up to brush his cheek with my fingers. "It was just unexpected, that's all." He caught my hand in his own, and brought it to his lips.

"I know." He said just as softly. "It's just that when…when you started to shake, I couldn't do anything for you. I-" I cut him off by placing a finger on his lips.

"How about carrying me up to my room?" I asked, shifting the topic of conversation. "I'm not sure I can walk just yet." He smiled and nodded.

"I can do that." Picking me up bridal style, he carried me out the door and up a flight of stairs, taking a different route from the one I'd taken earlier. When he saw my confused look, he smiled. "If I took the other way, the others would pounce on us and never let you rest." I laughed softly, resting my head on his shoulder and closing my eyes.

I must have fallen asleep before we'd gotten to my room, because when I woke up, it was to the same scene as yesterday. Rolling over, I blinked blearily at the alarm clock. When I saw the time it read I had to do a double take. Then I jumped out of bed and ran into the closet. I emerged a few minutes later wearing a pair of jean capris and a light blue tank top. Casting one last glance at myself in the mirror, I darted into the bathroom to brush my hair out. Opening my bedroom door, I shot down the hall and pounded down the stairs.

When I got to the kitchen, I found it empty. The living room was the same, though the TV still had a scene from one of the video games on it. Half and hour later, I had searched the entire house, with no success. Finally collapsing on one of the chairs in the kitchen, I glanced around tiredly. Suddenly, my gaze lit on a piece of paper taped to the fridge. Getting up, I went over to see what was on it. It read:

_Li, we've gone out for a bit. Sorry we didn't wake you, but you were in a deep sleep and I figured you'd rather have your sleep instead of getting dragged to Koenma's. We should be back before 1:00, but if we aren't, there's a pre-made lunch I prepared for you, so you can eat that if you get hungry. Feel free to explore the house and the grounds around the house, but don't go too far and make sure you always know where the house is. See you soon,_

_-Kurama_

I set the note down on the table and sat back in the chair. Glancing at the clock, I sighed; it was only 11:40. I still had about an hour and twenty minutes to go before they came home. Opening the fridge, I found the lunch Kurama's note had mentioned. I decided to explore a bit and to take the lunch with me, as a picnic sort of thing. Turning the paper over and locating a pencil, I quickly scribbled out a note to the others if they came home while I was gone telling them what I was doing.

Finished, I went out through the front door and looked out over the large lawn to the woods down the hill. They looked inviting and I decided to explore there first. Twenty minutes later, I had found a nice meadow with a couple of large rocks in the middle. Climbing up on the rocks, I pulled out the lunch and started eating, enjoying the peaceful forest.

A sudden noise from behind me interrupted my quiet lunch. Turning, I watched in surprise as a small creature sped out of the bushes towards the rocks I was sitting on. Right behind it came a larger creature that looked something like a wolf, except that it had a much shorter snout and the color of the fur was all wrong; it was a reddish orange that brought to mind the color of fire. I didn't have much time to dwell on this, however, because the smaller creature jumped up on the rocks and into my lap, trembling in fear. Closer up, I found it was a small imp, of the type generally found inhabiting trees or log piles, that had dark hair and dark blue eyes, currently wide with fear. The wolf-like creature stopped short of the rocks and looked up at the imp and I with its large yellow eyes. Its snout opened and, to my surprise, words came out.

"Give me the imp." It said. I frowned, immediately taking a dislike to the creature. In my lap, the imp squeaked.

"No. If you want it, you'll have to go through me." I said bravely, bolstered by the knowledge of my regained powers. It growled.

"No one defies the alpha of the Dark Lord's Hunters!" It howled in rage. I raised an eyebrow.

"Well, that seems like that's what I've just done." I observed. "So, what are you going to do about it?"

It pulled its thin lips to show long curved fangs as long as my pinky finger. "All those who defy the will of the Dark Lord must die, by order of the Dark Lord himself." It sounded as if it was reciting a rule or law of some sort. I frowned again.

"And if I don't know who the Dark Lord is?" I asked, suddenly curious as to whom the creature kept referring to. The creature looked shocked that I would ask what it obviously thought was a stupid or redundant question.

"The Dark Lord is he who wields the Stone Eye in the Tower of Hyre." It explained slowly, as if to a particularly dense pup. My frown deepened.

"The Tower of Hyre? But that's where Chikara lives." I said, confused. The creature looked even more shocked than before.

"You dare to name the Dark Lord?" It asked in an awed voice. Then it looked at the sky for a few moments. I glanced up, too, but all I saw was a few clouds scuttling across an azure blanket. Then it looked back down at me. "You were not struck down by the Dark Lord?" It said, if anything, more awed than before. "You must be the one he has been looking for." Suddenly, it looked ashamed. "I am sorry, Lady. If you wish to save the imp, it is no business of mine to question your motives. Should you ever need help or assistance of any kind, just call the name Junei and I shall come." Junei bowed as best a creature like it could, then turned and trotted off into the woods. I stared after it, momentarily confused. Then the imp in my lap pulled on my sleeve.

"Lady!" He squeaked. "Lady!" I looked down at him.

"Yes?" I asked, still a little dazed.

"Is Junei right, are you the one the Dark Lord has been looking for?" He asked excitedly in his high voice. I frowned slightly.

"I had no idea what Junei was talking about." I said firmly. "Now, shouldn't you be getting back to where ever it is that you came from?" He looked at me in horror.

"Go back to the awful tower? No, no, no. Hakana has no wish to return to the tower." He said. I glanced down at him.

"Hakana? That's your name?" He nodded vigorously.

"Yes, Lady, that is Hakana's name." I frowned slightly as what Hakana had said hit me.

"Wait, you say you came from the Tower of Hyre? Where the Dark Lord is?" I asked quickly. Hakana nodded.

"Yes, that is where Hakana came from. Junei was sent to take Hakana back. The Lady saved Hakana from a terrible death!" He squeaked. "Hakana thanks you from the bottom of his small heart!" I frowned, thinking.

"Do you know much about the Dark Lord?" I asked.

"Yes, more than any other slave there." Hakana said, suddenly lowering his voice to a whisper so that I had to strain to hear him. "Hakana was the Dark Lord's personal server for most of Hakana's life. Hakana knows more about the Dark Lord then he knows." Hakana nodded conspiratorially.

"Hmm. Perhaps you could be of some use to me after all, Hakana." I said, picking up the remainder of my lunch. "Here, are you hungry?" I offered the imp some of the cheese from the sandwich Kurama had made. Hakana took it gratefully.

"Thank you, Lady. Hakana hasn't eaten for two days."

"Well, you won't have to worry about that where I'm taking you." I said, standing up. Looking down at Hakana, I added, "Do you want to ride on my shoulder? I can go faster if I'm not waiting for you." He looked up at me in shock.

"The Lady will permit Hakana to ride on her shoulder?" He asked incredulously. "Hakana would be honored to ride on the Lady's shoulder."

"I take it that's a yes, then." I said, bending down to pick Hakana up and put him on my shoulder. Jumping down off the rocks, I started back to the house, my mind reeling with what I had learned in the past ten minutes.

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A/N: I love Hakana. He's just so much fun to write. Anyway, now the action's really gonna start and the story should progress a little faster from here on out. Feel free to send me reviews about how I'm doing so far, but like I said before, this whole story's already written, so it doesn't affect my update schedule one way or another. Still, I like to hear from people, so feel free to drop me a line.

Haliaetus


	9. Unraveling Riddles

A/N: Hullo to all my adoring fans! Well, kinda. So far, I think there've only been about two or three different people who've reviewed, which is kinda sad when you think about it.

On a different note, from what I can tell from how many pages this whole story takes up on Word, the same story on FF will probably take up almost 20 chapters. Yahoozums.

Need I reiterate the fact that YuYu Hakusho will forever _not_ be mine? 'Cause it's getting a bit repetitive to be doing so. Anyway, on with the story.

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When I opened the front door to the house, I was met with chaos. Ducking as a chair went flying out the opening, I looked into the living room. Yusuke, Kuwabara, Keiko, Yukina and Botan were all huddled behind the TV set, trying to hide from whatever was going on. Across the room, I saw Hiei and Youko having an all out fight, grabbing whatever they could to throw at the other and using spiritual energy attacks, as well. Both demons were madder than I had ever thought possible and they were arguing about something or other. I came into the room in the middle of Hiei chewing Youko out.

"You are the most despicable and shameless…" He sputtered as he tried to find the words to describe Youko. "…Filth! How you can face anyone after what you've done I have no idea! You knew and you still did it, didn't you?! Answer me, you nut-headed thief!" Youko dodged a flying lamp and scuttled to one side, picking up a book as he did so.

"What the heck are you talking about? I didn't do anything to her! If anything, you should be the one who's sorry! You messed with her mind!" Hiei drew himself up in righteous anger and, if looks could kill, Youko would have died about a billion different deaths at that instant.

"I did nothing of the sort!" He yelled, ducking the book and chucking another lamp at the fox demon. "You messed with her affections!"

"What in the world gave you that idea?" Youko said defensively, ducking the lamp a little too late and getting a bump on his head. I made my way over to where the others were hiding, Hakana clutching my hair tightly. Slipping in next to Botan, I addressed the blue-haired girl without looking away from the fighting demons.

"What the heck is going on?" I asked, raising my voice to be heard over the noise. She looked over at me with a relieved expression.

"Li!" She exclaimed. "It's good you're back. They've been going on like this for the past twenty minutes and nothing we do is helping." I gave an exasperated sigh.

"Well, what are they arguing about?" I asked.

"They're arguing about you, Li." Keiko leaned over Botan to look at me with wide eyes. "They both think the other messed with you to get you to do something or other, so now they're taking it out in the only way they know how. Please, stop them. I'm afraid they're going to actually get hurt if they keep it up." I sighed but nodded.

"Fine." I plucked Hakana off my shoulder and handed him to Keiko. "Here, take Hakana. I don't want him to get hurt in this." She nodded as she took the wood imp. I stood up and waited for a good opportunity.

Seeing a brief pause in flying projectiles, I stepped forward and yelled, using a touch of my power to enhance it. "BOTH OF YOU, SHUT UP RIGHT NOW!" In surprise, they both shut up and looked at me. I lowered my voice. "That's better. Now if you can't resolve this in a more civilized manner, I will personally make sure you both are put through the worst torture devices I have ever seen and a few I haven't. Understood?" Mutely, they nodded. "Good. Now, please step out of the room." I exited the room and waited out in the hall. They came out, sheepish expressions on their faces. I crossed my arms and tapped my foot, shaking my head.

"What am I going to do with you two?" I asked them, not expecting an answer. They avoided my gaze and scuffed the floor with their feet. "Hmm, I know, I'll make you clean the living room up so that it looks as much like it used to before you started fighting. Then you can inform me as to what went on at Koenma's, I'll tell you about what I found out while you were gone, and then both of you can be my personal servants for the rest of the day. How does that sound?" They looked up, surprised that they'd gotten off that easily. I grinned. "Of course, who knows what I'll ask you to do…" I trailed off as their faces took on horrified expressions. "Okay, now that we've got that settled, let's go to the kitchen, where we might actually get something done."

We went back into the living room to get the others and Hakana, then we all trooped down the hall to the kitchen. Once there we sat down in the chairs around the table, Hakana sitting on the table surface. Everyone kept casting curious glances at the wood imp, but I refused to explain until I heard all of what they had gotten at Koenma's. Kurama (Youko had switched out) went first.

"Well, basically what he wanted was to inform us that they had managed to find out who had taken the amulet. It's a demon named-" I interrupted.

"-Chikara, right?" He looked at me in amazement.

"Yeah, how did you know?"

I smiled. "I'll tell you later. Please continue."

"Right…Well, he supposedly lives in the Tower of Hyre, in the Makai." Kuwabara groaned. "The odd thing is that the Tower is underground." I nodded as another piece of the puzzle fell snugly into place. "Now, Koenma wasn't sure as to the motive behind Chikara taking the amulet, but he believes it's to take revenge for something that happened a long time ago." Another piece clicked into place. "Anyway, he wants us to go after him as soon as possible." I nodded. "Well, that's all I have. What about you, Li?"

I sat back in my chair. "Well, while you guys were getting updated by Koenma, I found out most of that on my own, courtesy of this wood imp, Hakana." He waved. I went on to tell them about what had happened while they had been gone. "Kurama, do you recall yesterday when I told you about the verse on the amulet being a prophecy of some sort?" He nodded slowly, confused as to where I was taking this. "Well, I've figured out what most of it means." The fox demon leaned forward, suddenly excited.

"Really? What?" He exclaimed.

Yusuke sat up, frowning. "Hey! Do you mind explaining a little? Some of us don't know what you're talking about!" I glanced over at him.

"Oh, sorry, Yusuke." I said apologetically. "I figured out that the verse that is on the back of the amulet is actually a prophecy about how it's destroyed and I think it has to do with us."

"Oh." He didn't have any more to say to that.

"So, as I was saying, I've figured out what most of it means, though some parts are still uncertain. First, though, I'll write it out for you guys." Grabbing a piece of paper, I quickly wrote out the entire stanza and placed it in the middle of the table. I pointed at the middle of the verse. "Okay, so here, it says 'six will go, six will come.' This I figure means six people will go and six will return, setting the number of people going and telling us that no one will get killed. Next, there are the first few lines. They seem to be talking about certain people. First, there's 'the cursed eye.' This obviously is talking about the amulet. The next few words indicate Chikara, who is wielding the amulet in anger against someone. After that, the focus shifts from that side to the other. 'The queen's own law, a thief lord's whip. Two humans and one without a home.' This names five different people." Yusuke raised his hand. "Yes, Yusuke?"

"How do you know 'the queen's own law' refers to a person?"

I looked at him gravely.

"Because I will be the one to order you to go with me and to order the destruction of the amulet." I said quietly. The others all looked at me in shock for a moment as they remembered that I had been the Makai queen. Then Kurama pointed to the next few words.

"So, 'the thief lord's whip' means me." He said. I nodded. "Then the two humans would be Yusuke and Kuwabara. But who's the one without a home?" I bit my lip, but Hiei beat me to the answer.

"It's me." He said softly, staring at the piece of paper. "I don't belong to either of the places I came from." I nodded; it was the truth. Kurama looked at Hiei for a moment, then also nodded and turned back to the paper.

"Okay, so that's the five, but who's the sixth?" I pointed at Hakana.

"We'll need a guide when we get to the Tower and Hakana has been there before." I said. "And as for the next four lines, I don't know what they mean, except that 'where the Lord holds sway' must mean the Tower, but that will become clear when we get there. These next lines, 'Now, queen, triumphant return, back to the one you hold dear. The day has begun to dawn on the birth of a New Year.' They refer to me. I'll be the one who actually destroys the amulet, so I'll return to the rest of you in victory. The next line means I'll be reuniting with someone I hold dear, I don't know who. These last two lines tell me when I'll return; on New Year's day." This time, it was Botan who looked up in surprise.

"But that's still three months off!" She protested. I nodded. "But that means you'll be gone for that entire time!" I nodded again, but spoke before she could continue.

"I know, Botan, I know. But don't worry, okay? I'll at least come back alive." I said. Yusuke looked up.

"Oh, yeah, like that's reassuring." He remarked sarcastically.

"Oh, shut up, Yusuke." I said wearily, turning back to the verse. I tapped the paper. "I can't seem to figure out what the rest of the lines mean, though, Any thoughts, Kurama?" The redhead looked up.

"Hmm? Oh, not really, but this riddle at the end…I feel as if I know the answer, but I can't put my finger on it; it's really annoying." I re-read the riddle.

"Yeah, I know what you mean." I said slowly. Standing up, I turned to the others. "Okay, then. We'll leave tomorrow." I looked at Botan, Keiko and Yukina. "Can I expect you to have food and other necessities packed for us? It doesn't matter how much you pack; I'll take care of it. We can pack our own clothes and other accessories." They nodded. "Thank you very much." Turning back to the boys, I smiled. "Okay, you guys. We're leaving tomorrow bright and early, so you might want to go start packing. Get a good night's rest so you'll be energized tomorrow. Now, go! And that's an order!" They mock saluted and departed from the kitchen at top speed. Keiko tapped my shoulder and I turned to see all three girls looking at me with worried expressions.

"We didn't want to say this while the guys were here, but we're worried about them. Will they really be alright?" Keiko asked pleadingly. I put my hands on her shoulders and looked at her and the other two.

"I promise I will look after them and make sure they don't get into too much trouble. And I'll do everything in my power to make sure they come back to you. Okay?" they nodded and I squeezed Keiko's shoulder. "Okay. Now, you guys should start packing. No need for prepared meals, just pack the ingredients and we'll cook on location. It doesn't matter how much, either. I'm going to go upstairs to my room, now. If you need me, don't hesitate to come get me." I turned to leave, then remembered Hakana. "Oh and Hakana, you can sleep where ever you want to, okay? Just make sure you're here tomorrow morning." He nodded, so I left the kitchen and went upstairs to my room.

* * *

A/N: Right. So, the riddle's mostly solved, but those last few lines are about as clear as a mud bath to Li. I should hope that the readers would be able to get it long before she does, but don't worry if you don't. That just means you'll have to read the entire story to find out.

So, ta-ta for now!

Haliaetus


	10. Chikara

A/N: Yay! Ten chapters! As a word document, we're currently on page 61 out of 108. You do the math for the remaining number of chapters. Anyway, disclaimer still applies (why shouldn't it? I mean, it's not like I took a trip over to Japan in the past 24 hours and somehow got the copyrights to YuYu Hakusho, right? Right.) and I'm having fun reviewing what I wrote about a year or so ago. Seriously. This thing has been sitting on my computer for almost a year, if not longer, and I'm finally getting around to getting it on here.

Oh. Quick note to those who might not know this. Chikara's name actually means 'power' in Japanese. I think 'hakana' means something, too, but I forgot what it was. Anyway, it's not all that important, except Chikara's got a bit of irony going on. So, read on.

* * *

Closing the door behind me, I leaned against it for a moment with my eyes closed. So much had happened in the past three days. Meeting the boys, seeing Koenma, my nephew, meeting the girls, regaining my powers, meeting Hakana and Junei, not to mention the verse/prophecy. Opening my eyes again, I glanced around my room. Everything was just how I'd left it, but something still felt wrong. I frowned, trying to figure out what it was and finding nothing out of the ordinary. A light breeze blew across my face and I impatiently brushed my hair back behind my ear. 

Then it hit me. The window was open. Crossing the room quickly, I looked out it across the forest and beyond. Nothing seemed wrong with it being open, unless you kept in mind that I had never even touched it in the past three days. As I turned away from it though, the space shimmered and I turned back, startled, as a picture began to form.

In the background was a stone chamber with circular walls and decorated richly with tapestries, cushions and rugs. In the middle of it all, though, was a large throne carved from, I knew, a single piece of black diamond. Seated on the throne, and lounging in a lazy position, was a demon, evident from the pointed cat's ears and tail and slit amber eyes. He looked up at me and smiled, revealing a mouth full of teeth filed to be pointed and sharp. Sitting up, he leaned forward slightly.

"So, Li-Sanya, we meet again." He breathed. I wrinkled my nose; it seemed as if I could actually smell his breath.

"It would appear that way, Chikara." I replied. The cat demon laughed.

"Yes, indeed." He said, still chuckling. "I assume you're wondering why I've taken the time to contact you this way?" I shrugged, trying to hide my curiosity.

"If you insist." I said indifferently. "It's not like I can stop you from telling me if you want to." Chikara's smile grew broader.

"You're right, of course. No one can stop me. But that's another topic for another day. Right now, all I want is to ask you something."

I raised an eyebrow. "You have my undivided attention." I said dryly, crossing my arms. His smile slipped for a moment as he watched my face, empty of all emotion, but he quickly put it back on.

"Why?" He asked, looking at me intently. I blinked.

"Why, what?" I asked, slightly confused as to what he meant.

"Why did you leave me?" He said tensely. I frowned as what he said clicked. Before I'd become the Makai queen, I had been a traveler, wandering around, learning what I could. During that time, I had come across Chikara. He had been badly injured and was near death. Why I saved him, I don't know, but I did. As he recovered, we grew closer and he eventually asked me to come stay with him. I had agreed, believing him when he said he loved me. I had thought I loved him.

Then I found out his terrible secret. He'd-

"What's taking so long for you to answer me, Sanya?" Chikara's voice interrupted my thoughts. I started and looked at him, eyes wide.

"Oh, nothing." I said quickly. "Just remembering something." I was silent a moment, then hesitantly opened my mouth to answer his question. "I…I don't know how to answer you." I said finally. "Perhaps if I could talk to you in a more personal manner, I could show you why, but I don't know how to answer you in words." There. That was the truth, but it didn't mean the same thing to both of us. Chikara looked at me for a moment, thinking. Then he smiled.

"That could be arranged." He said slowly, and I felt the hairs on the back of my neck rise as his voice sent a chill up my spine. "If you could, meet me by the Singing Stones. You know the place." I nodded; it had been where I had first found him. "I'll be waiting for you to come." I started to turn away from him, thinking the conversation over, but his voice brought me back. "Oh, and Sanya?" I turned to him, a questioning look on my face.

"What now?" I asked, weary of him already.

"I wouldn't get too attached to that fox of yours." I stared at him, shocked, and wondered how in the three worlds he had known about Kurama's background and the fact that I knew him. He chuckled at my expression. "Oh, I have many ways of knowing things; just like you, Sanya. Call it jealousy, revenge; call it what you want. If he tried to take you from me, nothing even you could do would save him." His expression changed to one of remembered surprise. "Oh, that's right, you can't even do what you used to anymore, anyway." I glanced down at my wrists involuntarily to where the bands had been.

Suddenly, I was extremely glad I had replaced the real ones with illusory ones that would register as the real ones on any level. My energy level readings were also suppressed, so even Chikara for all his power wouldn't be able to tell. I allowed my face to show shame, fear and anger and was rewarded by Chikara's cruel smile.

"So keep that in mind. If he tries to come between us, I'll kill him and make you watch." His eyes had become hard pieces of orange topaz. I stared at him, letting him see the fear in my eyes. He chuckled as the picture in the window began to fade, leaving only the forest and the setting sun for me to look at.

I stood there for a moment, then shut the window with a snap. Turning, I set my mind to packing for the trip we would be taking in the morning. The conversation with Chikara would not be shared with the others, particularly Kurama. I would have to find some reason for the boys to let me go to the Singing Stones.

No sooner had I come to this conclusion than my bedroom door opened and who but Kurama, along with Hiei, came in. I turned to look at them, Chikara's words ringing in my head. I forced what I hoped was a casual smile and clamped down on my sudden unnatural fear for Kurama.

"Can I help you?" I asked, my voice not giving away any of my inner tension. I saw Hiei frown slightly and tightened my mental barriers, causing him to scowl even more. Kurama didn't seem to notice.

"Yes, actually, you can. We were both wondering about something." He said. Hiei sighed.

"If you keep talking like that, it'll be time to leave before you ask her." He told Kurama impatiently. The fox demon's face grew pink. Hiei turned to me. "What _he_ wants to ask you is if-"

"I can ask her well enough myself!" Kurama injected. Hiei glanced up at him.

"Hn. You are certainly doing a stellar job of it." Kurama's face shot up through about a dozen shades of red. I sighed.

"Hiei, would you please refrain from speaking for a short period of time?" I asked wearily before turning to Kurama. "Now, what was it that you wanted to ask me.

"Uh…" He couldn't quite bring himself to ask whatever it was. Before I could prompt him further, Youko decided to take matters into his own hands. A moment later, the tall silver-haired demon was standing in front of me, his hands on his hips.

"I'm not sure why it's so hard for him to ask." He said. Hiei looked like he was hard pressed to obey me and still agree with Youko, finally settling on nodding his head. A part of me found this hilarious, but I pushed it away for another time. Youko continued. "He wants to ask you to be-" The door slammed open, this time admitting Yusuke and Kuwabara, who were shouting at each other and at us at the top of their lungs. I covered my face with my hand as Youko and Hiei turned on the two humans with identical scowls on their faces.

As they argued about what ever Yusuke and Kuwabara had been arguing about as well as about how impolite it was to just butt in on someone else's important discussion, I thought about what both Hiei and Youko had begun to say. _Kurama wants me to be…what?_ I wracked my brains trying to think of what it was but couldn't come up with anything. Finally I decided just to take it out of Youko's mind, since Hiei would notice me immediately. Reaching out slowly, I carefully insinuated a tendril of thought into his consciousness. Sorting through what he currently had at the front of his mind, namely Yusuke and Kuwabara and how annoying they were, I tried to find what it was he had been about to tell me. Locating it was harder than I'd thought it would be, but when I did find it, I nearly went into shock, barely managing to draw out of Youko's mind without alerting him to the fact that I had been there at all. Going over to my bed, I sat down on it and tried to figure out what it meant.

Hiei noticed my withdrawn silence as well as my change in position and frowned. Leaving Youko to take care of the two idiots, he came over to stand in front of me. I looked up at him, not really seeing him there and forgetting that he could sense the state of my mind. "You found out." It was a statement, not a question, but I nodded my head anyway. He sighed. "Neither of us has had any real experience with this sort of thing and Kurama is too polite to just come right out and say it." He said quietly. I looked at him, startled out of my shock by what he was saying. He continued. "Youko is different. He more or less says what's on his mind, regardless of the consequences." I nodded, but my mind didn't really comprehend what he was saying. Something occurred to me, then, something Kurama had said at first and I frowned slightly.

"Kurama said you both wanted to ask me something. Were you going to ask the same thing?" I asked, curious and wanting to know, but at the same time hoping it wasn't. Hiei looked away from me for a moment then glanced back, his expression one I hadn't seen on his face before. Though, on anyone else, I would have called it embarrassment.

"No, not quite."

"What were you going to ask, then?" That was a relief, but his answer was still cryptic.

"I wanted to ask you if you'd be willing to…" He trailed off, then shook his head. "No, you've already got too much to handle right now. You don't need me adding another to your load. Forget I said anything." He began to walk away, but I reached out and grabbed his sleeve, stopping him. He turned to look at me again.

"I want to hear it." I said in my 'you had better tell me or I'll get it out of you one way or another' voice. He sighed and came back to sit down on my bed next to me.

"I just wanted to know if you'd help me with something."

"What?" The way he was avoiding talking about it directly was starting to bug the heck out of me. He frowned and looked over at the others, who had progressed from a shouting match to a fistfight.

_I want you to find something in the book I stopped you from reading yesterday._ he said silently. I looked at him in surprise.

_But I thought you said it was too dangerous!_ I protested.

_I know what I said!_ He said shortly. _But now you have all of your powers and I want you to open it. I need to find something._ I pursed my lips and studied his face, calculating what he'd be willing to do to get this thing he wanted to find so badly.

_What is it?_ I asked. He glanced down at his feet, avoiding my gaze.

_The Fire Stone._ My eyes went wide and I couldn't stop a small gasp.

_You want to find **that**?!_ I asked incredulous. The Fire Stone was a stone of unimaginable potential that could only be used by fire demons. Anyone else who tried to tap into its power was incinerated on the spot. Its exact powers were as yet unknown, as the fire demons guarded its secret jealously and no one else could even touch it. It had been lost for the past seven thousand years, though, and no one still living knew whether it had been purposely hidden or lost accidentally, but either way, no one had found it. _What makes you think that the book has the location in it?_ I asked.

He was silent for a moment, before looking back up to look me in the eye. _Because the book was made by the person who hid it._ I bit my lip; if I found the location of the Fire Stone for Hiei, who knew what would happen? It could reject him because of his ice demon blood, or it could transform him into a completely different person than we knew now, or something else I couldn't even begin to imagine. Still, he seemed to know what he was doing…

_I'll look for you, but you have to tell Kurama something first._ I said finally, looking away.

_What?_

_Tell him that…I can't. At least, not until this mission is completed. As much as I might want to, I can't._ My heart felt heavy as I told Hiei, but I clamped down on the impulse to just tell the short fire demon what had happened before they'd come in. He glanced up at me.

_What do you mean you can't? It's a simple question of yes or no._ I bit my lip again; of course he'd ask that.

_Because…because there's someone we'll meet on this mission that won't take it kindly if he finds out about it._ That was as much as I could safely tell him. If I told him any more, he'd probably spill to Koenma and then my nephew'd forbid me to not go on this mission and I was the only one who could make it successful.

Hiei looked at me curiously, but didn't press it, probably figuring that if I wouldn't tell him the real reason, then there was a good reason for it. _Okay. I'll tell him._ I cast a grateful glance at him.

_Thanks. It means a lot._

_Hn._

Just then, Youko emerged from the fight victorious and holding both boys by the collar of their shirts. He grinned at us and I couldn't help but smile back. Yusuke and Kuwabara looked less than happy about it, though, as they were scowling at Youko, or trying to, anyway.

"Is everything resolved, then?" I asked. Youko nodded.

"I believe so." He said. Then he turned and tossed the boys out into the hall, shutting the door after them. He turned back to me, but before he could say anything, Hiei was next to him, obviously explaining something using telepathy, because his mouth wasn't moving, but Youko's expression kept changing. Finally, he settled on a slightly hurt and betrayed expression as he looked at me. I couldn't look him in the eye, so I started to examine the bed cover as if it was the most interesting thing I had ever seen in my life.

I heard Youko mutter something to Hiei and the door open then close again. When I heard footsteps coming across the room, I glanced up at Youko, slightly afraid of what he'd say. He stopped in front of me and knelt down so he was looking me eye to eye.

He didn't say anything, just reached out and gently brushed his fingers across my cheek. I could feel tears start to leak out and I angrily brushed them away. Youko caught my hand as I started to do it again. I looked at him, slightly surprised. He leaned forward and softly kissed each tear away. I closed my eyes, unable to look at him anymore after what I'd had Hiei tell him. Now, he spoke.

"Li." He said quietly. "Li, don't do this to yourself." I opened my eyes and looked at him, confused. "You're going to hurt yourself more than you will hurt Kurama, hurt me, if you keep this up." I bit my lip, wanting to tell him why, but unable to. "We'll understand if you don't, but tell us yourself." I shook my head.

"It's not that." I said, trying to prevent tears from falling again. "It's just…" My control failed and I started to shake, rocking back and forth. Youko sighed and edged up on the bed. Drawing me close, he rested his chin on the top of my head. I buried my face in his chest as I sobbed out all my fear for him/Kurama, my anger at Chikara for trapping me like this, my fear for myself, my helplessness, everything. Finally, the tears slowed to a stop, and I simply lay against him, taking comfort in his warmth.

Youko pulled away slightly so he could look down at me. "Li…" He didn't say anything more, just lowered his head to press his lips against mine softly. I gave in and let the only thing that mattered at that moment take over. He drew away and I looked up at him, blinking sleepily. He smiled slightly. "I can see how Kurama fell for you so quickly." He said quietly. I smiled as well, a weak one, but the best I could do at the moment.

"Nonsense." I said, leaning against him again. "He didn't do anything. All it took was a bit of encouragement and some honesty." I felt him stiffen slightly at that. "Of course, there might have been some indefinite variables in there that I didn't count on, but the basic equation had nothing to do with him falling." I felt him relax again as he realized I was joking. He laughed.

"I see. Of course." He said. "How silly of me to think otherwise." I laughed, too, but my humor was cut short by a huge yawn. Youko stood up and picked me up. Tucking me into my bed, he leaned down and gently kissed my forehead. I blinked up at him sleepily as I let go of his neck. "Goodnight, Li."

"Goodnight, Youko." I said, yawning. "Oh, tell Kurama goodnight for me, would you?" He smiled and nodded. I turned over and fell asleep almost instantaneously, just after thinking about how exhausting the past few days had been.

* * *

A/N: Hoo boy. Li's got a lot of stuff on her mind, what with the trip, the amulet, Chikara, the Fire Stone, Kurama/Youko, Chikara, getting to the Singing Stones (you'll find out about these later) and did I mention Chikara? Right. So, little attempt at humor there at the end, but I don't recall putting humor as one of the category thingies, so you shouldn't be reading this for the humor. You should be reading this because I'm such a good writer and you're actually interested in the plot line. Yup yup. 

Anyway, thanks to the grand total of two people who've been reviewing--Rose of the Moon and Luca4ever. I've enjoyed hearing from you guys!

Haliaetus


	11. The Singing Stones

A/N: Okay. I just looked at the last chapter and realized that the site didn't allow for the symbols I used to indicate mindspeech (that conversation between Hiei and Li) so I'll make a point of finding something new to use for the next time. Sorry about that to all of you who got confused at that point. I hoped you followed it, but if you didn't, let me know and I'll fix it, if I don't do that anyway.

Disclaimer still stands. If you don't remember what it said, refer back to either chapter two or three; I forgot which one I put it in...

Ah, what the heck. Just read, 'kay?

* * *

The next morning, when I woke, I was surprised to see that it was still dark out. Sitting up, I glanced at the clock. 4:27. I groaned and flopped back down onto the pillows, hoping to be able to get some more sleep.

Half an hour later, I finally admitted defeat and got up to go into the closet and then into the bathroom. I emerged at 5:23 wearing jeans and a black shirt that had the words 'Just because you don't know me doesn't mean I'm nice' written across it. As I pinned my hair up into a slightly messy bun, I examined myself in the mirror, making sure I could conceal my emotions even from Hiei. Finally satisfied, I turned away and grabbed the bags I'd packed the night before. A quick spell I'd learned a long time ago made the heavy luggage almost as light as air.

Going downstairs, I dropped my bags by the front door and went on into the kitchen, where I found several bulging packs. Opening one, I found it full to the brim with non-perishable foods. I smiled; the girls had done a good job. Walking over to the fridge, I opened it and scanned its contents for something for breakfast. I finally located half a carton of eggs, some orange juice, and a package of bacon. Pulling them and some pans out, I set to work making breakfast.

Twenty minutes later, I turned from the stove to smile at the still sleepy faces of Yusuke, Kuwabara, Hiei and Kurama, who had been woken by the smell of cooking bacon. "Here, eat up." I said, placing a plate of eggs and bacon in front of them. They didn't bother even thanking me, just grabbed a fork and knife and set to it. I smiled again and continued making breakfast. Hakana poked his head out of a cupboard as I opened it to find bread for toast.

"Breakfast time?" he asked hopefully, sniffing the air. I smiled and nodded, reaching up to put him down on the table.

"Yup. Eat up, now; we've got a long journey ahead of us."

Soon, the girls joined us and I finally sat down as well to eat. Kurama and Hiei had disappeared up to their rooms, supposedly to get their baggage. Yusuke and Kuwabara, after eating for a further ten minutes, did the same, leaving the girls, Hakana and I alone.

I sighed as I leaned back in my chair. "We'll leave as soon as the boys bring their stuff down." I said to no one in particular. The girls all turned to look at me.

"Yeah…" Keiko said, trying to hide her worry for all of us. I smiled at her reassuringly.

"Don't worry." I told her for what felt like the twentieth time. "We'll all come back." She sighed.

"I know, but I can't help but worry." She said, Botan and Yukina nodding their agreement. I couldn't think of anything else to say, but thankfully, I was saved from having to say something by a loud series of thumps coming from the direction of the stairs. Surprised, I got up and quickly walked out to the landing--

--And promptly burst out laughing. Behind me, the girls had followed and they also started to giggle. Buried under several gigantic bags was a rather ticked Yusuke. As he struggled to push his luggage off of himself, Kurama and Hiei came down the stairs, both carrying a respectable number of bags and having no trouble at all with them. When they saw Yusuke, Hiei smirked and Kurama looked worried for a moment before smiling. They carefully stepped around the unfortunate human to stand next to us. Kurama glanced at me.

"Should we help him?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. I couldn't answer for a moment because I was laughing too hard. Finally, wiping tears away as my laughter died, I nodded.

"Yeah, we probably should." I said, walking over to stand over the pile of bags. Muttering a quick spell under my breath, I touched each bag. As I touched them, they started to float up into the air. By the time they were all floating at about head level, everyone was staring at me. I raised an eyebrow.

"What?" I asked, fully aware of why they were staring and enjoying it immensely. "It's just a simple flotation spell." Yusuke was actually gaping up at me from his position on the floor.

"Howdahe'didyadodattodem?" He said in one long word, as if he hadn't heard me just say it. I smiled at him and tapped the side of my nose in a secretive manner.

"That… is for me to know, and you to never find out." I said teasingly, turning back to the kitchen. "You can place your luggage by the front door where mine is." I called over my shoulder. "And could someone please go see if Kuwabara is having trouble? We need to leave as soon as possible." In the kitchen, I quickly worked a different spell to reduce the size of the food packs as Hakana, who hadn't gone out to see what had happened, watched. I stopped when they were small enough to fit in the palm of my hand. Grabbing an empty bag, I put the miniature bags inside and went back out into the hall, carrying Hakana on my shoulder.

I wasn't quite sure how all of the bags the boys and I had packed ever fit into the hall, but they did, making a gigantic pile of different colored bags. Starting at the end closest to me, I began the shrinking spell again, putting the bags into the same bag as the food as I did. Half an hour later, I was finished and had only two full bags instead of about fifty. Going into the living room, I looked around at the others, who were sitting around in different areas, not doing much of anything.

"Okay, you guys." I said, my voice sounding unnaturally loud in the near silence. They looked up at me. "It's time to leave." The boys nodded and started to get up and go out. The girls followed to say their good-byes. As soon as they were out, I went over to the bookcase to find a certain book. Jesa's Guide to the Makai and the Artifacts and Persons Found Therein was right were I had put it, two days ago, its red leather cover looking as innocuous as ever. I pulled it out and looked at it for a moment. Then Hiei spoke from behind me, making me jump.

"Looking for a particular book?" He asked, looking up at me with a knowing look on his face, as if he was daring me to deny that I was looking for the book I now had behind my back. I stared at him for a moment as I tried to find my voice.

"Yeah." I said, as casually as possible. "It's the book I was reading a couple of days ago. It was pretty good and I didn't get a chance to finish it." Hiei gave me a doubtful glance, but apparently decided to go along with my explanation. Silently, I shrank the book and tucked it into my back pocket. The fire demon in front of me looked past me to the bookcase.

"I think you put it over there." He said, pointing to the shelf next to me. I turned to look; he was right, the book I had read after he had stopped me from reading the Guide was sitting there. I pulled it off and turned back around.

"Thanks." I said. He nodded and we went back out to join the others in the hall. Kurama, Botan and Yusuke turned to look at us as we came out of the living room. "Ready, you guys?" I said, not sure what the looks the three were giving me meant, but not sure I liked what it was. They nodded and I gave Yusuke and Kuwabara the packs to carry, telling them that if they wanted to come along, they'd do what I told them to or they'd get left behind; it got Yusuke's mind off of whatever it had been about, anyway.

Keiko opened the door and held it as we trooped out. Before I could follow the boys, though, Botan pulled me back, her expression probably the most serious one I had ever seen on her face.

"Li…" She started, giving me the same look she'd given me before. I frowned slightly, wanting to know what she wanted.

"What is it, Botan?" I asked a bit impatiently, wanting to be on my way. "Can you make it quick? I need to go."

She gave an exasperated sigh. "Li, must you keep making Kurama feel as if he really isn't anyone special to you?" she asked. I frowned even more.

"What do you mean?"

"Look." She said quickly. "Kurama's more or less in love with you, right?" She didn't wait for my nod before continuing. "So if he sees you spending time in a room alone with another boy, he's obviously going to get jealous, right?" This time she waited for my hesitant nod. "So try not to spend much time alone with the other boys on the trip, okay? I don't want to have to explain to Koenma why one of our spirit detectives is depressed." I understood now what the expression she and Kurama had had on when I came out of the living room with Hiei. She had been worried about Kurama and slightly disappointed in me and he had been a bit jealous. Yusuke had probably been his usual self, always trying to dig into everyone else's business.

I sighed. "I'll try." I promised, turning to go. This time, she let me. I waved at them as they closed the door and turned to face the boys. I gave them an excited smile, completely opposite of how I was feeling about meeting with Chikara again. "Alright, then. Let's go!" A moment of concentration resulted in a swirling portal in front of us. Several moments later, the hilltop was deserted.

-One week later-

Yusuke grumbled as he trudged up the hill behind us, Kuwabara panting behind him. Kurama, Hiei, Hakana and I were already at the peak, looking down over the valley on the other side. The usually energetic human collapsed with a groan next to us. I gave him a pitying glance before looking back to the view spread out before me. He moaned as he slowly sat up.

"Why couldn't you just make a portal straight there?" He whined for the millionth time. Hiei answered without looking at him.

"She's explained it about a billion times, baka; any big use of her power would immediately announce our presence and location to the demons in the Tower." He said tonelessly, obviously wanting to just tear Yusuke's throat out and end the torture for us all. Then he frowned slightly. "Though, this doesn't look like the Tower of Hyre to me." Hakana piped up before I could answer.

"That is because it isn't, Master Hiei." The wood imp squeaked. Hiei glared at him.

"Then what is it, pipsqueak?" I smiled slightly to myself; Hiei had been rather withdrawn for the past week, so it was a relief to hear him speak in anger.

"Those…" Hakana said slowly, ignoring Hiei's angry tone. "Those …are the Singing Stones."

Below us, on the valley floor, was a circle of tall stone monoliths, looking as if the wind had one day decided to just pick up some stones, then drop them at random angles into the ground. I knew better, though. The Singing Stones were one of only a few remaining artifacts from a group of demons that had existed about two million years ago. No one knew the purpose of the Singing Stones, but they had been named such because when the wind blew from a certain direction and at a certain speed, the whole valley came alive with a haunting sound that seemed to reverberate from a person's very bones. Hiei didn't seem to appreciate their unique beauty, though. He frowned at them.

"If this isn't the Tower of Hyre, then why are we here?" He asked of no one and everyone. I answered, not looking at him.

"We are here because there is something I have to do here before we go on to the Tower of Hyre." I glanced at him and pointed out across the valley and beyond. In the far distance, so far that it was only a small smudge against the darkening sky, was a tall pillar of stone. "See that pillar?" He nodded, still frowning. "That's the half-way mark to the edge of the territory that surrounds the Tower, at a radius of four hundred miles."

I ignored Yusuke's groan and started down the hillside into the valley. Keeping my eyes on my feet and where I was putting them, I called back over my shoulder. "We'll camp tonight at that copse over there." I pointed to a small stand of trees that had a brook flowing through it and was about a hundred yards away from the Stones; I would need the boys as far away as possible if I was to keep my promise to Chikara. As I thought about the demon, I felt a chill go up my spine and my attention lapsed, causing me to slip on a loose spot of shale. Someone caught me before I had gone even two feet and I looked up into Kurama's face, the closest it had been throughout the whole trip so far.

"You okay?" He asked as he helped me back up. I nodded, looking down the steep grade I had almost gone straight down to hide my sudden blush.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little shaken up, that's all." I said, starting my descent again and not looking him in the eye. The climb down seemed to last forever, but we were all finally at the bottom. Apart from that one incident, I hadn't slipped again, but the others had each had their troubles. Everyone except for Hakana, that is; he had been on my shoulder the whole time.

As the sun went down, the wind picked up and a little test told me that we would be in for a pleasant surprise, considering that Yusuke and Kuwabara, nor Hiei and Kurama had ever been to the Singing Stones before. We had unpacked some of the food and Kurama was cooking it over a low fire. The rest of us busied ourselves with putting up makeshift tents and laying out pallets to sleep on. As we sat down to eat Kurama's cooking, which was delicious as ever, the wind changed direction and I held up a hand to stop the others as they ate and talked.

"Shh." I said quietly, listening to the night sounds. I smiled at their confused faces. "If you listen, you'll hear why those stones are called the Singing Stones." Just as I finished speaking, the first note echoed across the valley, followed quickly by several more. Within five minutes, the Stones were in full swing and the boys were captivated by the tuneless melody they were hearing. I smiled sadly as I watched their expressions change from confusion to awe. Edging backwards, I melted into the shadows, the black clothes I was wearing helping me to blend in with the darkness. Now was the best time to sneak away. The boys weren't paying attention, so they couldn't stop me. I knew they'd be fine; they had Hakana with them and the wood imp knew his way from here and I had taught both Hiei and Kurama how to use the shrinking and flotation spells, so they could get into the bags. Even so, as I snuck away from the small fire, I couldn't help but worry for them.

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A/N: How fun! Personally, I wouldn't mind getting transported into my own story if it meant I could get to see and hear the Singing Stones. Still, Chikara's waiting for Li there, so it might not be a good idea to go at that particular time... 

Anyway, thanks a bunch to all of you who are reading this! It's nice to know that there are _some_ people who actually care! Until next time!

Haliaetus


	12. She Loves You, Dolt

A/N: Sorry 'bout the wait; I have issues being able to get onto the computer that has Internet access at home, so I do it at school (I'm taking a summer class). I'm also going to post a second chapter right after this one, which means a double update! Whee! Anyway, disclaimer still applies (I don't see any major changes in the published story, do you?) and I'm having fun putting this up for you guys!

Buh-bye!

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(Hiei's POV)

I listened to the music the Stones and wind were making, scarcely able to believe that those giant hunks of stone could make such a beautiful sound. Suddenly, I wanted to go closer to the rocks, see how the music was made. The others weren't paying any attention to anything but the music on the wind, so it was easy to sneak away. How I managed to miss Li-Sanya's empty spot, I had no idea, but I did, so it was a surprise when I found her standing in the middle of the stones.

Any thoughts of listening to the music disappeared as I looked at her standing there. She seemed to be looking for something, because she kept moving her head side to side. Once, I thought for sure that she had seen me, but the shadows must have hid me because she just moved on. Huddling in the darkness next to one of the stones, I waited with her for whatever it was she was waiting for. I didn't have long to wait.

A few moments after I arrived, a section of shadow across the circle from me detached itself from the rest and came towards Li-Sanya. As he stepped into the moonlight, my eyes went wide. It was a tall cat demon with glowing amber eyes, dressed in a long black robe. He stopped about a foot in front of Li-Sanya and they talked for a moment; it was all I could do to not jump forward and knock him away from her. Instead, I strained to hear what they were saying. To my surprise, it turned out to be pretty easy to hear, considering that the wind was blowing in the opposite direction.

"No." Li-Sanya was speaking at that moment. "Not here. Chikara, please. Let's just go to the Tower." I frowned; the cat demon was Chikara, the guy who had stolen the amulet? I listened to his response.

"You want to go to the Tower? Whatever for, Sanya?" He asked, incredulous. My frown grew deeper; he had a shortened name for her, just like Kurama did (and the others as well, but who cares about them?), except it was the other part of her name. "This place is much better for this sort of discussion." I frowned even more at that. What did he mean? Suddenly, I remembered that listening wasn't the only thing available to me and I sent out a cautious strand of thought into both of their minds.

Li-Sanya had a fairly strong barrier, but I quickly found a weak spot and wriggled in. Chikara had absolutely no barrier what so ever, so it was even easier to get into. What I found in both of their minds surprised me beyond belief. I had thought that Li-Sanya had been acting a bit weird lately, but this just confirmed it.

She had been on edge for the past week, but I had just put it down to being back in the Makai after a fairly long absence. Now I found out the real reason. It was that other cat demon, Chikara. He had somehow contacted her and he had done or said something that had made her scared; I got the impression that it had to do with Kurama. Then he had told her to meet him by the Singing Stones. After that had come a flood of memories and those alone would have been enough to curl even my hair (mine defies physics, remember.), let alone hers. I learned more about the former queen in those few moments than I had in the past week and a half.

Chikara's mind was even more messed up. Apparently, he'd had a thing for Li-Sanya about three thousand years or so ago, and still did. Somehow, though, she had gotten away from him, he assumed because someone else had seduced her away, though, looking at his and Li-Sanya's memories, I figured he didn't know she knew about his secret, and he'd been trying to get her back for the past two thousand some odd years. He'd gotten word of an amulet of incredible power, so he'd stolen it, hoping to use it against whoever had stolen Li-Sanya away from him. Thus the revenge part. She, on the other hand, had absolutely no intention of ever going back to him; she was doing this so she could get closer to the amulet to destroy it.

While I had been analyzing their thoughts, the two cat demons had been talking rather animatedly about going back to the Tower or not. When I tuned back into the physical world, I was startled by what Chikara was saying, but probably not as surprised as I would have been if I hadn't just looked into his mind.

"Sanya, I don't want to force you to do anything, but if you won't tell me why, then I'll have to use extreme measures and that fox of yours isn't what you think he is." I nearly decapitated him in that instant as I realized he was talking about Kurama. _Stinking liar, _I thought viscously, _She wouldn't love him if she didn't know what he was._ For a moment, I was startled by my choice of words. Then I realized that it was true, however much anyone avoided saying so outright, especially her and Kurama, who had avoided each other like the plague for the past week. My thoughts were interrupted by something that was totally unexpected and just about made me faint in shock, which is probably the hardest thing to do in the world.

At Li-Sanya's refusal to talk about anything here, as she insisted that they go to the Tower, Chikara had pulled her in closer, so that they were nose to nose. Li-Sanya struggled to free herself, but Chikara's grip on her arms was too tight and she couldn't get away. He whispered something cruel, judging by the way that Li-Sanya's fear spiked. Suddenly, he pulled her in for a lingering kiss and I could feel Li-Sanya just about faint with surprise, disgust, fear and anger at herself for having to let him do it. Needing to do something other than kill the other demon, I steadied her mentally and felt her surprise at my action. Then she realized what I was doing there and her initial panic subsided.

Hiei! She said as Chikara drew away, her mind voice sounding rushed. Tell Kurama why and don't let him come after me, no matter what. You have to get to the Tower on your own; Hakana knows the way. I'll see you there. Now, go! Before he realizes you're here! I didn't bother answering as I raced back towards the campfire and the others. Not even the music echoing from the Stones behind me made me pause.

Back with the others, I found them in much the same positions as before. Sighing, I yanked on some of Kurama's hair and pushed Yusuke into Kuwabara. All three of them turned on me in anger, but I held off their protests with my hands and a few choice words that put them all into a shocked silence. Hakana even fainted.

"Li-Sanya has gone to the Tower."

(Kurama's POV)

I couldn't believe it. What Hiei was trying to tell me wasn't true. I turned to him, exasperated and in denial, and told him as much.

"Hiei, stop it." I said, at my wit's end. "What you're saying couldn't possibly be right." Youko had told me what had happened the night before we had left and I knew she wouldn't do what she had done if she didn't mean it. I knew it…thought I'd known it. Hiei sighed as well; he was exasperated almost as much as I was, though he didn't let it show as much.

"Kurama, look." He said, for what seemed to be the millionth time. "She had to do this. She wouldn't have been able to get close enough to the amulet to destroy it if she didn't do this. It's not because she doesn't love you; she does." I cut him off with a sharp movement of my hand totally ignoring his odd choice of wording.

"You've been saying that, but how do I know it's true?" I exclaimed, torn between believing him and my own feelings. I could feel Youko's consciousness stirring restlessly in response to my own frustration and I clamped down hard on my out of control emotions. If Youko came out, any chance for reason to get through would go out the window. I turned back to Hiei. "Give me something more concrete!" I demanded, not really expecting him to actually do so. He shrugged.

"Okay." I blinked at him, but that was all I had time for. Suddenly I was taking a trip through memories not my own, feeling emotions I had no recollection of feeling, seeing places I had never been to. I realized with a start that Hiei was showing me what he'd seen in Li's mind.

A short while later, after what has seemed like an eternity, the memories ended and I simply sat there, slightly in shock. I turned to look at Hiei, amazed at what I had seen and experienced. "I had no idea…" I said slowly. Hiei shook his head.

"Of course you didn't. She didn't want it widely known." He said, crossing his arms. "Now do you believe me?" I nodded.

"Yeah…" I said. Then something else occurred to me, something about just before we had started our journey and had been on her mind since. "What was it that made her do it?" I asked, somehow knowing Hiei would have the answer.

"Chikara threatened her with your life." He said simply. I stared at him. My life…? Suddenly, what he'd been saying all along hit me. _'It's not because she doesn't love you; she does.' She…loves…me. _The concept had the effect of a train hitting me. I supposed I'd known it all along, but to have it said so plainly really made it real. I stared at Hiei and saw his smirk as he realized that it had finally hit home.

"Then…" I felt like I was in a dream, that nothing I did was actually happening. "Then…we should…we should…"

"Follow her directions and keep going to the Tower." Hiei said for me when I couldn't say it. I nodded as I stood up slowly, feeling as if I was moving in slow motion.

"Yeah…the Tower." Then I narrowed my eyes and turned to face the direction of the Tower of Hyre. "The Tower. Where that scum-bag Chikara is…and Li."

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A/N: Hmm...so Hiei finally had to knock Kurama over the head with the truth to get the silly fox to accept it. Chikara had better look out when Kurama gets there...heck, _I'd_ be scared.

See you next chapter!

Haliaetus


	13. Precourser to the End

A/N: Wow...So close to the end...another long chapter and then the epilogue and I can start posting the sequel...Oops. You weren't supposed to know that...(except, if I _really_ didn't want you to know, I wouldn't have typed it, would I? Hmm...) Still, it might be incentive for those of you reading this to continue reading and wait for the sequel, which I will begin posting when I get home from camp next week. For more information, refer to my profile page thing on these dates.

Disclaimer still applies, but I really shouldn't have to tell you this by now. I mean, it should be obvious that this story isn't part of the actual series...

Ah, well. That's just how things are, so you might as well skip the rest of this pointless babble to read. Not that there's anything left to read of this babble...

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-Nine weeks after Li-Sanya's arrival in the Tower of Hyra, two weeks until the New Year's, the Day of the Hunt-

(Hiei's POV)

I looked across the plains to the dark area on the ground about six hundred feet in front of me that was the inverted Tower of Hyre. Beyond it was the Silent Forest, its trees swaying in the breeze that swept through the forest without a sound. The others were spread out next to and behind me, sitting or lying on the ground like I was. Yusuke and Kuwabara were amusing themselves by searching through some of the bags that Kurama'd restored to their original size. I ignored them, preferring to examine the ground we had yet to cover to listening to their endless chatter. Over the past few weeks I had perfected the ability to hear only Hakana or Kurama's voice, tuning the two idiots out.

As if my thoughts had summoned them, Hakana and Kurama sat down next to me, also looking out over the plains. I noted out of the corner of my eye that Hakana was visibly trembling as he looked on the place where he had been imprisoned for so long. Kurama didn't look much better, but I knew it was simply because he'd been getting less and less sleep the closer we got to the Tower of Hyre. He tried to be the one everyone could depend on, but I could tell it was starting to wear him thin. His mind was a jumbled mess most of the time, except when he thought of Li.

I surprised myself as I thought about that. When had Li-Sanya become Li to me? I knew Kurama called her that, as did the others, but I had always held her as Li-Sanya in my mind, the queen and demon I knew she was, rather than the person they seemed to know her as. Putting it down from listening in on Kurama's thoughts too much, I turned to look at him.

"So, what do you think?" I asked, already knowing the answer, but feeling a need to fill the silence. Kurama sighed.

"I don't know." He said softly, still gazing at the Tower of Hyre. "Sometimes I want to get there as quick as I can, to help. Then, other times, I don't feel like there's any urgency: that I could take forever to get there and it wouldn't matter in the end." He glanced at me, his green eyes, usually so accepting and understanding, now wearied and desperate, as if he'd aged about a thousand years over the past few weeks. I nodded; I understood how he felt, probably better than he knew. Before I could say anything, though, Hakana piped up in his high, squeaky voice.

"This is bad." He said, his voice kept low and secretive. He wasn't looking at us; his attention was focused on the Tower, or right before it. I looked at the Tower again, this time using my third eye. Along the base of the tower were little ant-like figures of demons, all carrying something or other into the Tower. I could see larger demons standing by with long whips and, as I watched, one of them lashed out and caught a young-looking rabbit demon on the back, causing the unfortunate demon to scream, its voice deadened by the distance. Other than that, I could see nothing wrong with the scene. Frowning, I turned to Hakana, who was now rocking back and forth on the ground where he was sitting.

"What's so bad about it?" I asked, not particularly liking the wood imp at the moment. He kept rocking back and forth, ignoring my query.

"This is bad. This is very, very bad. No use trying to stop it either." I could have just about screamed my frustration, but I clamped down on the impulse tightly, taking a moment to calm down; losing my temper with Hakana invariably lead to him holing up and refusing to speak with anyone and we'd never get anything out of him then.

"What…is…so…bad?" I asked painfully slowly. Hakana barely glanced up at me, his attention riveted on the scene at the base of the Tower.

"The Hunt is starting." He said in reply, though I wasn't entirely sure he'd heard me. "The Hunt is starting. This is bad."

Kurama saw my fraying temper and stepped in to prevent an explosion. If I had been capable of gratitude at that moment, he would have had it all. "I don't understand, Hakana. What's so bad about a hunt?" Hakana looked at him, eyes wide.

"Not just _a_ hunt, _the_ Hunt!" He squeaked, pointed ears standing straight out from his head. "The Hunt is where the Dark Lord takes his Hunters into the forest and hunts the Stag, with all of the demons he invited watching. They also bring their Hunters and whoever catches the Stag gets one thing from the Dark Lord. No matter what it is, the Dark Lord must give it. Hakana has not seen the Hunt before, but others tell him that the Dark Lord has won for the past five thousand years straight." Hakana finished talking and looked back to the Tower, still muttering under his breath about it being bad. I looked at Kurama over the top of Hakana's head. Instead of talking out loud, I opted for the other choice open to me.

Kurama, can I talk to you for a moment? Privately? The fox demon looked up at me, surprised, but nodded. We stood up and left Hakana to stand under a small stand of trees nearby, out of easy hearing distance of the humans and Hakana. After checking for any eavesdroppers, I turned to look at Kurama's confused expression.

"What did you want to talk to me about?" He asked. I took a deep breath, hoping he wouldn't flip out on me.

"When Hakana said that the winner of the Hunt could request of the Dark Lord any one thing and be given it, no matter what it was, didn't that send off a little warning bell in your head?" I asked, hoping he had noticed what I had and that I wouldn't have to spell it out for him. My hopes went out the window as he shook his head, still confused. I sighed, rubbing my temples.

"Okay. Look at it this way. Chikara sees Li-Sanya as his possession, right?" He nodded, still not seeing where I was going with this. "So the other demons probably would see her the same way, right?" This time the nod was a bit slower, as if he was starting to understand what I was getting at and not wanting it to be true. I had to agree with him on that. "So if they can ask for one _thing-_" Emphasis on 'thing'. "-Then they could conceivably ask for Li-Sanya, presuming that they know that she's even there, though I wouldn't put it past the scum bag to show her off like a trophy." Kurama had stopped listening. He put his hand out to steady himself against a tree as what I was saying sunk in. I felt his mind switch from despair to outrage and I closed my mind to the torrent of anger sure to follow. Sure enough, he turned on the tree and broke it in half easily, the branches cracking against the ground. Three more followed it in the same manner before he went up against one that didn't want to break just yet. He strained against it for a moment, his anger level rising fast. I knew the tree didn't stand a chance. Nodding sagely as it creaked and snapped, I watched as it toppled over to join its neighbors. That was the last of the trees, so he turned back to me, most of his anger spent, but still needing something to take the rest out on.

"Hiei…" His voice was hoarse, as if he'd been shouting too much and too loud. "Hiei, we need to get to the tower as quickly as we can. Ask Hakana if he knows any back routes we can take; I don't want to risk asking him right now. As soon as we get there, I'm finding Li and then I'm going to kill that filthy scum." I just nodded and turned away, keeping my eye on him; I had seen him in this sort of state only once before, but that had been once too many. I didn't put much faith in Chikara's defenses if Kurama found him now.

Several repeated questions and answers later, I knew as much as Hakana did about getting into and out of the Tower without being seen. I went back to join the boys, perfectly willing and able to singe their sorry behinds if they lagged after I told them what we were going to be doing. Standing over them, I waited the second it took for them to realize I was there. As they scrambled to their feet, I quickly gave them a run down of what had happened and what we were going to do. They took all of about three seconds to grasp the general idea and then they were all for going that very second. I actually had to grab their shirts and hold them back to prevent them from running off to the Tower on their own.

After tying them up to a couple of trees to keep them in one place and out of the way, I quickly shrank the bags they'd been looking through and put them back into the carrying bags. Tossing them down next to the humans, I untied them, giving them instructions that basically included stay out of the way, carry the bags and don't do anything idiotic, though I doubted that they'd be able to do all three at the same time. Only when I was sure that they'd follow my every order without question did I turn to get Kurama, only to find Youko in his place. He shrugged at my surprised expression.

"I thought this way I could possibly blend in with the 'honored guests.'" He said by way of explanation. I just raised my eyebrows, not so sure about it. Then again, he did have a way of making what he wanted come to life…I shrugged and went on to get Hakana.

Twenty minutes later, we were sneaking through the trees that grew right up to the Tower's base. As we crept through the intermittent shadow and sun, I couldn't help but feel uneasy. The forest was too quiet, the trees too evenly spaced, their branches too perfect, for it to have been natural. As I glanced around, I could see where it got its name. The Silent Forest. Nowhere around me did I see any sign of life, other than the noiseless trees I made a mental note to ask either Kurama or Li how it had come about, providing we got out of this alive.

Just then, Hakana stopped and I almost stepped on him. The wood imp was in his element, literally. His brown skin and hair, as well as his green and brown clothing let him blend in to the point of near invisibility. There had been times where the only way I had known where he was had been because I could sense his mind and spiritual energy. Now, he turned and signaled for us to be quiet and waved us forward slowly. Cautiously, we crept forward and I was again made very much aware of Youko's stark contrast to the dark trees and the area under them. Hakana pointed to the line of bushes about five yards away.

"The tunnel entrance is over there." He said in a low squeak. I could just make out the slight unnatural line near the ground in the shape of a circle. Keeping my eyes on it, I nodded.

"I see it." I replied in a low voice. "Now, you'll get in and find your cousin, Ito, right?" The wood imp nodded, his dark eyes troubled slightly.

"Yes, Hakana will find Ito. You go and find the place the Lady is staying. Watch out for the Hunters!" He warned. I nodded again; he had told us what the Hunters were and we were all anxious to avoid them. Behind me, Youko growled deep in his throat.

"Okay. Enough already! Let's just get in!" He said impatiently. I glanced back at him, slightly annoyed, but understanding why. Taking a second to listen and cast my mind around for the energy of anything around us, I gave the signal and we all darted forward to dive under the bushes. I had managed to land almost directly on the hidden entrance, so I quickly pulled the hatch cover up, wincing slightly as the grass on top ripped with an unnatural sounding noise in the deathly silence. Pulling it closed after the others had gone in, I conjured a small flame, lighting the darkness. Youko was staring at it, so I raised an eyebrow.

"What?" I asked quietly, but still hearing echoes. He pointed to the flame I held above my open hand.

"The prophecy. 'Darkness will light the path, Fire will show the way.'" He whispered. I stared at the flame as well, slightly awed that it had actually come true. Then I shook my head to dispel any thoughts other than those needed for this mission. I beckoned to the others, starting forward into the pitch black with my small flame.

-Same day, a few hours later-

(Li-Sanya's POV)

I looked myself over in the mirror that Chikara had had put in my room for the occasion again. The dark green dress whispered as the silk folds followed my movements. My silver hair, tail, ears and eyes complemented it nicely (I had changed the color to prevent Chikara from noticing that I had all of my power). The bodice was a bit low, but at least it wasn't the first dress he'd presented. I tugged slightly at the wide sleeves that came down to about midway down my forearm. Satisfied with the way it looked; I turned to the vanity, picking up the malachite pendant that matched the dress perfectly. There was also a pair of teardrop malachite earrings that, when I put them in, winked gently in the soft, artificial light. Ready, I slipped on a pair of silver slippers and went to the door, knocking three times. The cougar demon stationed outside opened the door almost immediately and, bowing, offered me his arm. I accepted and he guided me up the winding hall to the reception room where Chikara would be meeting his guests. Outside the large oak double doors, the cougar demon let me go and opened the door, bowing me in.

The room inside, large enough to fit two of the boys' mansion inside, was decorated lavishly with bright cushions, tapestries, banners, streamers and, of course, the guests' elaborate outfits. Mine was simple in style, but as I walked down the carpet leading to the high seat where Chikara was already seated, I heard the jealous hisses from many of the female guests and the appreciative whistles from the male. Approaching the seat where Chikara held court, I stopped and swept into a low bow.

"My Lord." I murmured, my eyes cast down, hating him, the Tower, the demons around me and hating myself for having to do this. The cat demon looked up, slightly surprised, but then a large smile crossed his face and he cut off the conversation he'd had to stand up and come down the steps to me. I heard everyone else's conversations die as they saw the sudden movement of their host. He stopped a foot or two in front of me, still smiling, but the look I saw in his eyes made my blood run cold.

"Ah, Li-Sanya, how nice of you to join us." He said, his low voice silky smooth as he took my arm and guided me up the steps he'd just come down. "Please, sit down so I can introduce you to the rest of my guests." He said, putting pressure on my arm until I sat down in the seat next to his, a slightly smaller, high-backed chair upholstered in a dark material that felt almost like velvet as I ran my fingers along it. Turning, Chikara addressed the room, his voice amplified with his power.

"Friends and peers, all. I would like to present to you a very special demoness." I felt my face start to heat up as everyone switched their attention from Chikara to me. He continued. "Here before you is none other than the former Makai queen, Li-Sanya." There was polite applause. Chikara turned to me, a slight smile on his face.

"Show them what you can do." He said quietly, not amplifying his voice this time. I smiled slightly and stood, holding my hands up. Everyone looked back to me, but this time I wasn't paying attention to them; all of my attention was caught up in working a piece that was sure to leave even the most unshakable demon in awe. My smile broadened and I looked down at my audience. For a moment, nothing happened and they started to whisper. My smile only grew.

All of a sudden, one of the demons in the back, a buxom dragon demoness, shrieked and stumbled forward into the demons in front of her. They turned to look at her and in doing so saw what had made her yell. As they comprehended what they were seeing, even more demons began to shriek and yell. I just stood there, smiling, as chaos ensued. Next to me, Chikara was just about out of his mind trying to see what was happening, as were the demons closer to the front. He turned to me, a confused look on his face.

"Li-Sanya, what's going on? I can't see!" I waved his protests down with one hand, still watching the activity below me.

"Just watch and wait." I told him, watching a section of the wall intently. "Just watch and wait."

Just then, one of the other cat demonesses in front squealed and all but jumped into her male companion's arms. Others began to cry out and I glanced down from the wall momentarily. Along the ground large human rats, each about two feet long, were crawling around, sniffing and looking around with their beady red eyes. They weren't real, just illusory images, but they acted real, making the demons around them that had never seen a rat before scream. Then I looked back up to the wall in time to see the next stage. I barely registered the dying down of screams as the rats disappeared in small groups.

The wall, covered in tapestries depicting past Hunts, previous Lords and Ladies and scenes from daily life of people who had been in their prime about fourteen thousand years, suddenly seemed to silently crumble apart. This was also illusion, but that didn't stop the demons from racing to get out of the way of blocks of stone as wide as they were tall and twice as long that came tumbling down. Through the seemingly now exposed space came something not even the most imaginative demon there could have foreseen.

With its long, tapered nose, intelligent eyes, curving horns, long, razor claws, scaly, armored hide, brightly colored feathers and jewel colored throat, the chimera was something out of a nightmare. It was a cross between what the humans called a velociraptor, a bird from the Makai that was well known for its insatiable appetite, and another human animal called the rhinoceros. I knew that most of the demons here didn't know what the two were, though they would recognize the distinctive colorings of the Makai bird, so the sight of it would be even more horrifying to them.

Just as it brought its head down to snap up a cowering dog demon, I waved, causing it to dissipate into a thin blue smoke. The rest of the illusion also rapidly disappeared, leaving the wall completely intact and as it had been before. I sat down again, satisfied with the result of my show. Chikara was the first to recover and he turned to me as the guests started to recover as well. His face was alight with excitement and awe and his voice reflected it.

"Li-Sanya, that was…that was superbly executed! Simply grandiose!" I winced internally, but kept a gracious and slightly smug smile on my face. I had forgotten about his rather extreme obsession with descriptive words that led him to use some of the oddest words to describe things. He turned back to his guests, most of who had recovered to the point that where if you didn't know what to look for, it would appear as if they hadn't just been cowering from an illusion. "Ladies and gentlemen, Her Highness, Li-Sanya!" This time, the applause was much more appreciative and enthusiastic. I smiled even more as I scanned their still frightened faces.

Breaking into the applause, though, came a shrill siren and everyone looked up expectantly, all of their thoughts about their recent terror wiped away as if they'd never been. A large set of doors on the opposite side of the hall from where I had entered opened and the crowd surged forward, filling the space and spilling out in a living tide. I stood and Chikara took my arm, guiding me off the dais and down towards the door with the other demons. Briefly, I wondered what was so special about the next room, but I didn't get much of a chance to dwell on it, because just then, we came through the doors and I saw why.

The whole chamber was decorated in shades of blacks, purples, greens and whites, creating a rather mysterious atmosphere. Laid out on the floor were many long tables, already set and decorated with candles made of small will-o'-the-wisps trapped in clear crystal globes, making the shadows thrown against the wall dance as the light shifted. Already, demons were finding spots around the tables, but one area, towards the front, was being left clear, the demons going by not even looking at it, as if it didn't exist. Chikara guided me towards this area and I suddenly realized why it was being reserved; we were the ones who were going to sit there. As I passed by the tables to my spot, I glanced around the room surreptitiously, looking at all the demons Chikara had invited. My gaze fell on a group of tittering female vulpine demons and I frowned slightly. Turning my head a bit more, I tried to see what they were giggling about. When I saw why they were so excited, I just about tripped over my own feet.

Youko was standing by a chair, his hands resting on the back lightly, as he waited with the others for Chikara and I to sit down first. He had worn a mask and his clothes were finer than any I had seen on him before, but I knew it was him. Just then, Chikara and I arrived at our seats and I had to take my attention from the fox demon to glance at the cat demon by my side, seeing as I had no idea as to what I was supposed to do. Thankfully, he didn't address me, but said a rather long and boring speech about how glad he was to have them all here and how he hoped that this Hunt would go well. While he talked, I let my gaze wander again, looking for Youko, but also looking at the other guests, trying to decide which, if any, would participate this year.

Finding Youko again, I watched him, hoping for him to look at me, but he kept his gaze on Chikara. Finally, I was tired of waiting for him, so I took the initiative. Gently easing a tendril of my thoughts into his, I spoke quietly, so as not to scare him enough that he gave himself away.

_Youko, what the heck are you doing here?_ I asked quietly, but intently. I watched as his eyes widened slightly, but thankfully, Chikara had just made a rather outrageous claim, so it didn't look out of place.

_Li?_ His mental voice sounded tentative.

_Well, I'm sure as heck not Chikara or Hiei._ I answered dryly. _Of course it's me, you dolt. Now answer the question. Why are you here, of all places?_ This time, his voice sounded just a little smug.

_Oh, trying to help you get to the amulet._ He answered breezily, his facial expression never changing. _We figured that if there was a significant distraction, you could get to the amulet and destroy it before the scumbag beside you knows._ I smiled slightly at his tone as he mentioned Chikara. Then I had to cut the connection because the 'scumbag', to use Youko's words, had finally stopped speaking and was now saying one last bit.

"And so I hope that we will all have a fun and exciting evening. To your health, friends." He raised his glass, a goblet made of opaque green crystal and the others all raised theirs.

"And to yours, friend." They replied in unison, giving the traditional response and drinking deeply from the goblets. Then we sat and the food came out, floating on trays buoyed by servants waiting just outside the doors. The dishes levitated onto the tables and we started to eat, enjoying it immensely.

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A/N: Yup. A cliffhanger dealy. 'Cause I love you guys so much that I want to torment you until the next chapter is updated. Really. I'm being serious here. 

Not! I was kidding, but I am going to leave it there until the next chapter, 'cause I want the last actual chapter to be a monster, which it will be. Something like 16 pages on Word, size 16 font, Times New Roman style...yeah. I had a bit too much time on my hands when I was writing this...and what's really sad is that the sequel is already at 103 pages (five less than Roses for a Queen) and not even close to being finished. That one is going to be a true monstrosity to break up into chapters...

In the meantime, though, I still have to finish updating this one, so check back tomorrow for the last chapter and the epilogue, which will be posted as a separate chapter even though it barely comes up to a full page of writing. Hoo boy. This is going to be fun...

Haliaetus


	14. The Amulet Revealed

A/N: Hey! Second chapter in the same day! This is my way of apologizing for not updating over the weekend, so enjoy it! We're back to Li and Chikara (I almost can't believe that dude came out of _my_ mind...) and our favorite queen doesn't seem too happy. Ah, well. It shouldn't take the boys too long to arrive.

Disclaimer still stands (I don't really have to repeat it all the time, do I?) so just read the story already.

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-Six weeks later, five weeks until New Year's Eve-

(Li-Sanya's POV)

It had been about five weeks since Chikara had brought me to the Tower of Hyre. For the first week, I hadn't seen anyone except for the occasional servant and then only briefly. My only window to the outside world, literally and figuratively, was a small hand mirror that I could use a scrying spell on. After the first week, though, Chikara had started calling me into his quarters until now I was seeing him every night for dinner and then a usually short talk afterwards. So far, I had managed to keep him off by coming up with things to amuse him and by telling him that I would tell him everything on New Year's Eve. It seemed to work; so far, he hadn't really pressured me to do anything if I expressed a disinterest and he hadn't asked me why I had left him again, either. All I could hope was that the boys were on their way and that they would get here before New Year's. I had tried scrying them in the mirror, but all I got was the edge of the lands surrounding the Tower. Apparently, Chikara had a barrier that prevented anyone from scrying in or out.

The weeks following that first week had been lonely and I would have given anything to hear even Yusuke's annoying whine. My thoughts had started out as plans about how to get the amulet, but they had eventually started to turn more and more often to Kurama until I was thinking about him nearly every waking moment. I wondered if he was thinking about me as much as I was him. In my boredom, I began to replay every moment I had ever been even in the same room as him. I really didn't have all that many memories, considering I had only known him personally for about a week and a half, really. It got so that I could have told you exactly what he'd been wearing and what his expression had been at any moment.

I wasn't sure if Chikara noticed how I would space out every now and then for a few moments, but I knew that the servants did, because I would come out of those trance-like moments sometimes to see a small imp's face looking up at me worriedly or a gentle deer demon shaking me. Chikara did seem to be wanting more and more out of me, though, as he kept on sending me dresses to wear that showed more and more, until I finally had to put my foot down at a skimpy, almost see-thru dress that barely covered what it should. After that, I never saw that or some of the other dresses again, though he did start to serve alcoholic beverages at dinner.

Our discussions after dinner were almost always about innocuous things, such as the weather that day, or the efficiency of the servants, or, once, the rising fame of the Spirit Detectives. Never did he or I bring up the subject of Kurama or why I was there. One night, however, towards the end of the fifth week, he brought up the subject of the amulet.

He had been drinking wine and, after several glasses, he was obviously at least slightly drunk. We had started out talking about the décor of the room we were in, a many-sided chamber decorated with hunt scenes and dark green, maroon and amber colors. He wanted to change it, but wasn't sure what he really wanted to be there. I liked the room; it was probably one of my favorites in the whole Tower. It had been here; decorated like this, since the last time I had been here. After a while of talking about color schemes, he went silent, staring meditatively into his wineglass. I also had a glass of wine, but I had barely sipped at it, not really liking that particular vintage.

Then he had looked up at me with a wild look in his eyes and he had stood up. At first, I thought he was going to try something, but he started to speak and I realized that the wine had finally affected him enough and he was just talking about whatever was on his mind.

"You know, Sanya, when you left, I was devastated." He had said, waving his nearly empty wineglass in the air. "I didn't know what to do when you disappeared. I thought some other demon must have snatched you away from me and you'd come back when you could, but you didn't return." Here he had turned to stare at me intently. "I wanted to bring you back to my side, but I didn't know where you were and if there was someone who would fight to keep you. I needed something else. Then I heard about this fabulous thing." That was the clincher; he never said the word 'fabulous' when he was sober; he thought it was for those who had no vocabulary. His expression grew secretive and his voice dropped to a whisper. "Here, I want to show you something." He had grabbed my arm, pulling me out of the room. Several moments later, he had opened a hidden door in the wall of a corridor that was surprisingly close to my quarters. I followed him inside, curious.

To my surprise, I found myself in the circular room that I had seen him in when he had contacted me the day before the boys and I had set out on our journey. The rugs, cushions and tapestries were just how I had seen them, but I wasn't paying any attention to them, I was staring at the large black throne that dominated the room as the only real piece of furniture in it. Chikara had gone over to kneel in front of it, messing with something on it. He seemed to have forgotten me, so I edged forward to look over his shoulder at what he was doing. Almost unconsciously, I memorized the way he undid the latch so I could do it if I had to.

"Aha!" He reached into the revealed chamber and drew something out, a fine gold chain hanging over his fingers. He turned to me with eyes shining with the excitement of a small child. "Here. This is what I stole to get you back." He said, holding his hand out so I could see what it was. I was expecting it, but it still came as a surprise.

The amulet itself was simple, a piece of carved and fired clay, with a chain threaded through it. As a demon, however, I could see the spells that infused it, were it, and made it what it was. Without the spells, it was just a pretty piece of art. With the spells, though, it became a powerful and deadly weapon. Chikara had shown it to me with the back towards me, so I wouldn't be accidentally turned to stone. As I had looked at the familiar inscription side facing me, I thought about the riddle written at the end. I hadn't found the answer to it yet, but I felt I was closer than ever to figuring out what it had meant. The first few lines leapt out at me and I could feel tears start to well up as I thought about whom they were talking about, the boys I had had to leave.

Then Chikara had drawn it back as if he was afraid I would take it and had quickly replaced it in its secret hiding spot, no longer a secret. He had escorted me back to my room and had left me there.

Now, at the end of my sixth week of imprisonment in the Tower, I was more alone than ever and more helpless than I had ever felt in my life. I lay on my bed, so different from the one back at the boys' mansion. Where that one had been plush and enveloping, this one was lumpy and stiff. Everything about this place screamed different: the walls, the closet, the bathroom, the floor, and the inhabitants. My mind didn't seem to want to work now, all that I could find the energy to think was that the boys were on their way, that I would see them fairly soon, that this thing was half over.

Getting up, I walked over to the desk and sat down, picking up the mirror as I did. Waving my hand over the surface, I waited for it to crystallize into a different scene. When it did, I was just about the most relieved I've ever been in my life. There, just inside the boundary, were the boys and Hakana, getting ready to settle down for the night. I zoomed in on them, wishing I could hear what they were saying and that I could talk to them. Just seeing them, though, was more than I had asked for, so I really couldn't complain.

I watched as Yusuke and Kuwabara got on Hiei's nerves so much that the short fire demon actually drew his sword. I smiled; they hadn't changed much. As much as I enjoyed watching them, I didn't miss the fact that Kurama was unnaturally withdrawn and antisocial, or that after they had eaten, he went off a ways with Hakana. Leaving the others, I followed the fox demon as he walked away with the wood imp. Sitting down, he leaned against a tree and faced towards the Tower of Hyre, facing me. He started to talk to Hakana, asking questions and the wood imp did his best to answer them. Finally, he seemed to run out of questions and he just sat there, looking towards the Tower. I saw the sad look on his face and I wanted to reach out and comfort him, to tell him that I was right there. But when I tried, I met the mirror's surface. Then he stood up and, turning, walked away, back to the others. I watched him go before dissolving the spell.

I sat there, the mirror held loosely in my hands, thinking about how to get the amulet and destroy it. My mind was revitalized and I had a new determination to see this mission through. Suddenly, I realized what a few of the lines in the verse had meant. I laughed.

"'Now, queen, triumphant return, to one you hold dear.'" I put the mirror down and looked at it, thinking about what it had shown me. "Don't worry, Kurama; I'll come back to you. Just believe in me and I'll be fine." Leaning back in my chair, I stared at the ceiling, up to Chikara's quarters. "You are going to go down, Chikara." I said and laughed again. I felt giddy, happy for the first time since I'd arrived in this foul, misbegotten place. "You are so going down."

The next day, I woke up with a new determination. I was going to do as much as I could to prepare my plan for execution once the boys arrived, but to do anything, I would need the help of the servants. Luck was with me; the servant who came with my breakfast was a wood imp, with such a resemblance to Hakana that I was sure they were related. As he set the large tray on the small table where I ate, I bent over, making a pretense of examining the food on the tray. What I was really doing was muttering to him out of the corner of my mouth.

"Hey. Do you know Hakana?" I didn't look up at his startled look, but continued to examine a pastry for any microscopic specks of imperfection. He looked around cautiously, then leaned in closer.

"How do you know his name?" He asked in a whisper, also looking at the pastry intently. I set the pastry down.

"He is with some friends of mine." I said, picking up a tart that was lying next to where I had set the pastry down. The imp picked up a different tart, immediately catching on to what I was doing.

"How do I know I can trust you?" He asked, suddenly suspicious. I blinked; I hadn't expected this question, though, as soon as I heard it, I knew it was a reasonable one. Time for some quick thinking and a gamble, then.

"I take it you know about the Stone Eye?" I asked, remembering Junei's term for the amulet. The imp hesitantly nodded. "Well, I've come to destroy it, just as the prophecy says." I saw the imp's eyes go wide out of the corner of my eye and I gave a silent relieved sigh, glad my gamble had paid off.

"The prophecy is to be fulfilled?" He asked, his voice full of awe. I nodded slightly.

"Yes, and my friends will help, as soon as they arrive with Hakana." I knew I had him, then, as he bowed his head over the tart he was holding.

"Then Ito is at your service, Lady." He said reverently. "I am the center of the Tower's secret information web; I know all that happens here. If you ever need me, send a message with whoever serves you breakfast." I nodded; such a thing would come in handy. Then I frowned slightly as something else occurred to me.

"Hey, Ito?" The wood imp looked up with questioning eyes. "Would you be familiar with Junei?" I saw his eyes go wide at the mention of the Hunter alpha's name.

"What business do you have with that terrible creature?" he asked fearfully. I glanced up at him, slightly surprised at his reaction. I chose my next words carefully.

"My reach is far and my powers unnamable." I said in a low voice. "The alpha of the Dark Lord's Hunters is my servant, willing to serve me should I call for his assistance. I asked because I currently do not know where he is." I raised an eyebrow at Ito. "I thought you would know." The imp seemed to come to a quick decision and nodded.

"I do know where he is. The Dark Lord's Hunters lair in the far reaches of the dungeons, let out only for the Hunt. Junei is the only one allowed out at any other time. They are starving and sickly, but that makes them only the more ferocious and they have already killed several of those sent to feed them." By his expression, I gathered that some of those killed had been relatives or friends. "They have no regard for reason or logic, being instead beasts that care for nothing except for the Hunt." I tapped my chin as I thought.

"Hmm. So, what is the Hunt?" I thought I remembered something about a hunt from when I'd been here before, but it had never occurred during that time, so I really didn't know what it was. Ito took a deep breath and continued in a subdued voice.

"The Hunt. It is held on the winter equinox, every fortieth year. At this time, all the servants are required to cook up a fabulous feast, the likes of which you could only dream of. The Dark Lord invites over many other demons and they eat and drink. Then they all go outside, and the Dark Lord calls his Hunters and they come in a tide of darkness." Ito shivered, but continued on bravely. "Then they set loose the Stag, a pale apparition that is made by the Dark Lord to give his Hunters a good hunt and a full meal. No one knows exactly what the Stag is, but all agree that it is not a physical thing with a sound, smell or feel. It looks like a stag, though, a white one, with red eyes." The imp fell silent as he remembered. I was about to reach out and shake him when he blinked and looked up at me. "That is all Ito can tell you, Lady. No one else can tell you more, except the Dark Lord himself or Junei, or perhaps even my cousin, Hakana, though he is not here. The Hunt will be held this year though, fourteen days before the New Year's." I nodded.

"Good. Thank you, Ito, you have helped more than you realize. Now, you should be going before the Dark Lord realizes you have stayed so long." The imp nodded and scuttled out the door, closing it softly behind him. I watched him go, a thoughtful look on my face.

"The Hunt, then?" I murmured. "Perhaps I will attend this Hunt." I glanced at the mirror, sitting on my desk, and smiled. The plan was coming together.

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A/N: This Hunt sounds like fun business! Ito talks just like Hakana, though that's not too surprising considering they're cousins. Li doesn't seem to have lost any of her manipulating ability in the years between her rule and now, though. Things are really starting to come together, now, so more action in the next few chapters and more of the riddle revealed.

Adios! Haliaetus.


	15. Solving the Riddle

A/N: Finally! The long awaited finale to Roses for a Queen! I would like to thank all of you who have read it from the beginning and I send all my love to those of you who actually took the time to review; Luca4ever, Rose of the Moon, Shadow Ice Maiden and Anime-Kunoichi! altogether, I got 12 reviews for this thing, which I hope increases after this is posted and the sequel is posted.

Beyond that, the basis for this story does not belong to me. YuYu Hakusho doesn't belong to me. Besides that, all OCs and places mentioned are mine. I would like to reiterate that use of the places mentioned, (i.e. The Singing Stones and the Tower of Hyre), please ask me before you do so, though I will probably have no problem letting you do so.

_Jesa's Guide to the Makai and the Person's and Artifacts Therein_ has been mostly converted to a nonmagical form, so if you would like a copy, whether for your own story or just for the heck of it, please notify me and we will work out a way to get it to you. A map of the Makai that I have created specially for this story (and the sequels) is also available if you would like to know just where the places mentioned are located. I included the demon city mentioned in the first few books of the manga series, but that is the only part of it that is not created by me.

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Midway through the third course, I went to take a drink from my goblet, a solid piece of rare red crystal, and stopped just short of drinking, placing it back onto the table instead. Chikara glanced over with a slightly concerned expression on his face.

"Is everything all right, Sanya, dear?" I blinked, looking at him distractedly.

"Hmm? Oh, no, nothing's right, right now." I replied, looking back down at my goblet. Chikara frowned and leaned forward slightly.

"Then what's wrong?"

"Someone just tried to poison me." I said, reaching out and wiping a finger around the lip of my goblet. Holding it up, I muttered something almost unintelligible under my breath and watched as my fingertip started to glow an unhealthy looking shade of yellow. "Kesherbane, if I'm not mistaken." Kesherbane was one of the most potent and deadly poisons in the Makai until it was abolished about three hundred years ago. Made from the pollen of a rare flower from the highest reaches of the Ridgeback Mountains and the sap of a tree found either in the Hykul Valley or on Nesuli Mountain, it could kill in as small of a dose as a few grains. After the abolition, legal trading of the powder stopped, but there were many other ways of obtaining a lethal dose, all of which were illegal. Almost undetectable, it was an assassin's favorite weapon, killing slowly and almost imperceptibly. Almost no one bothered to protect themselves against it anymore, because of all the difficulty in even getting it, but I had always preferred to be on the safe side when it came to poisons and other ways of being killed unknowingly, wrapping myself in a cocoon of protective charms and spells. These had saved my life numerous times, along with my built-up resistance to many of the more common powders and liquids. Chikara just looked at me as if I was insane.

"Kesherbane?" He asked incredulously. I nodded. "But that was forbidden nearly three hundred years ago! Besides, my barriers would never have let it in." He shook his head, refusing to believe me. "You must be mistaken." I looked at him coldly.

"I am never mistaken about these things." I said, my voice as chilling and brittle as ice. He looked at me, surprised by my tone. I stared at him. "I was one of the top chemists at the time of its discovery, I'll remind you. I know of about four hundred sixty-two different ways to kill you with just the stuff you have at this table." He glanced down at his food, suddenly seeing it in a new light. "If I say it's Kesherbane, it's Kesherbane." He nodded, swallowing nervously as he remembered that I was still dangerous to him, even if he thought I didn't have all of my power. I turned back to look at my goblet. Without moving a muscle, I incinerated it, turning it and its contents into a fine reddish-yellow powder. The demons near me looked over with trepidation, but quickly turned back to their own food when I glanced at them. I picked at the rest of my dinner, not eating much. To my relief, the meal ended quickly, and we all exited the dining hall to gather outside, next to the forest.

I looked around once we had gotten outside; during the whole of my stay at the Tower of Hyre I had never been allowed to go outside, so I was glad to breathe the fresh air again. Studying the Silent Forest, I wondered how the tall hedge that now surrounded the trees had gotten there. Then it occurred to me that Chikara had probably had servants erect it especially for the Hunt, seeing as there hadn't been anything there when I'd first come here. I didn't have very long to contemplate about it, though, because Chikara got the crowd's attention by raising his arms. They must have been watching him for a signal because they immediately stopped their mutterings and looked at him. He smiled genially.

"Friends and esteemed peers. I have invited you all here for the commencing of the forty-year Hunt and the determining of the host for the next one." I looked at him, slightly surprised. His tone had the sound of genuine excitement and anticipation, but the words themselves sounded as if some stuff-bag in a dusty old room somewhere had written them for a formal occasion, not a hunt. The cat demon continued in the same manner. "There are a select group of us competing this Hunt for the prize of the White Stag, an item of the winner's choosing given from the host, myself, and the hosting of the next Hunt, to be held forty years from now. All fourteen of us have been carefully selected by a power unknown to any here to compete and no one can tell the outcome once it has begun. I would like to wish all of the competitors good luck in this Hunt and may the best demon win." With those words, he indicated an area specially set-aside for those participating and their packs. Thirteen other demons of varying species and appearances detached themselves from the crowd and strode over to stand next to their hounds, which were as diverse as their masters. I cast my gaze over them, trying to decide who might win and, if they did, what they would ask of Chikara.

The brilliance of silver reflecting the Makai sun drew my gaze like a moth to flame. I stared as Youko took his place among the competitors to stand next to a pack of strange creatures that I recognized only vaguely. Confused, I let a tendril of thought ease into his mind.

What are you doing there? I asked, wanting to know, but afraid that I wouldn't like the answer. Youko hid his surprise by looking down at his hounds in a pretense of checking them over one last time.

I was invited. He said simply. It seems that Chikara didn't even know of my supposed death. And neither had any of the other guests, so it was fairly easy to blend in. That pretty much covered everything, except for one matter.

Where are the others, then? I asked nervously. Youko answered in the same tone.

Hidden somewhere inside the Tower. He said, running his hands along the body of one of his hounds. They snuck in with Hakana's help, and even now should be setting up the diversion that will allow you to get to the amulet. I would have said something about that, but just then Chikara asked for, and got, silence again. I cast a slightly worried look at Youko's back before terminating the link and giving my attention to Chikara.

"Now friends, the moment we have gathered here for." He said, raising his hands above his head. At that movement, a section of the ground near him started to tremble and I took an involuntary step backwards before I realized it was just that section; no where else was the earth shaking. As I watched, the sky grew dark and the bright sunlight gave way to duskiness. With a grinding noise, the door began to open and Chikara's Hunters spilled forth into the fresh air that they hadn't breathed in forty years, their red eyes glinting in the dim lighting with a crazed intensity. As I looked at them, I realized that Ito had been right, the creatures were pitifully thin and I could count every rib on each creature's side. All except one, that is.

Junei stood proud and defiant in his place next to Chikara, his smoldering gaze almost daring anyone to protest. He looked no different from that day in the woods when he had chased Hakana into my lap and jump-started this whole mess, his flame-colored fur still as vivid and unnatural as ever, his similarity to the wolves of the human world still as obvious as ever.

Everyone inhaled at the sight of the creatures that had caught the White Stag for the past several thousand years, giving Chikara almost complete power. Most of those who had come didn't expect it to change now, either, and were resigned to their fate, held in the hands of a power-crazed demon. I hoped that he would lose and Youko win, just to spite him. I stopped myself with an effort; my plan wouldn't be able to be enacted if I was too caught up in seeing Chikara humiliated. There was a way to do this, the boys would help immensely with their distraction, and I was going to find it. Chikara would have no power to stop me. Ito had been right; he was very much concerned with his appearance and what others thought of him, much more than how he treated others, except for those who were more powerful than he was. So he would squander his power in this pointless Hunt, while he lost what he had been leaning on more and more recently.

I smiled grimly, secure in the knowledge that no matter what he did, the end result was going to be the same.

(Hiei's POV)

I glanced around the richly furnished room, empty but for myself, Hakana and the wood imp's cousin, Ito. The others were waiting somewhere else as we tried to find Li. Ito looked around the room almost unbelievingly.

"She's gone…" He said for the billionth time in the past five minutes. I groaned silently, already sick and tired of this place, even though I'd only been here for a few hours. "The Lady's gone…" I turned to him, my already worn patience worn even further.

"If she's not here, then where is she?" I asked with painful slowness. Ito looked up at me, his eyes wide.

"I…" He seemed to cast around for a logical answer. "She…" Then something seemed to hit him, seeing as his eyes suddenly went wide with shock. "The Dark Lord. He must have taken her to watch the Hunt…" I blinked, slightly confused, then started to the door as what he said hit me.

"Well, then, what are we doing here, wasting time?" I said impatiently, holding the door open. The wood imps looked at me, confused. "If we're to help her, we need to start preparing." They seemed to understand, finally, and followed me out into the hall. I turned to Ito again. "Now, which way is the room?" He pointed soundlessly and I turned to look in the direction he pointed; up, to the top, several levels above us. I nodded and set off up the sloping hall that wound around the Tower in a spiral. As we started off, though, I felt the Tower tremble and stopped, placing my hand against the solid rock wall. Ito looked around, also startled, but Hakana simply looked upwards with a horrified expression on his face.

"What is it?" I asked from between clenched teeth. He looked down to me, his expression not changing.

"The Hunt." He said simply. "It has begun."

(Li-Sanya's POV)

I watched as the gate into the Silent Forest slowly opened. The hounds or other beasts of the competing demons all turned to look at the opening with anticipation. No one spoke now, not even in the tiniest of whispers; their attention was riveted on the dark space beyond the gate. A pinprick of light appeared in the space and I blinked, sure I was imagining it. It didn't go away, though and as I watched, it actually drew closer. Several moments later, its form was clear enough to identify that of a stag.

Completely white, it seemed to glow with its own ethereal light. The only thing that took away from its seeming pureness was the pair of blood red eyes. I was suddenly reminded of Hiei's eyes when I saw them, but I knew there was a difference. The White Stag had no human intelligence, no feeling towards anything else, leaving the eyes blank. It stopped at the threshold of the gate and looked over the hounds eager to begin the hunt with an uncaring gaze. All of a sudden, it rose up on its long hind legs and opened its mouth. A sound like that of a hunting horn erupted forth and it spun and leaped away into the forest, quickly disappearing into the darkness. The hounds all bayed in their own way and leaped after it, Chikara's Hunters in the lead. As soon as the last one entered the Forest, the gate slid shut with a hollow boom that echoed through the once again silent forest. Even though I knew they couldn't have gotten that far, I couldn't hear the sound of the hounds' baying as they chased their elusive quarry.

As if a dream, Chikara turned to look at me, a half-smile on his face. "Well, then." He said, holding out his arm for me to take. "Shall we gather inside?" I nodded and reached out to take his arm. Just as I touched him, though, the front door of the Tower slammed open, drawing everyone's attention. My eyes widened as I saw the deer demon stumbling towards us. It was the same stag that had served me several of my meals and he had been a good conversation partner. How I knew it was him, I had no idea, because he was now covered in the sticky redness of fresh blood and there were several gashes all along his arms and legs. Chikara turned to him with a displeased frown.

"What do you want?" His voice was cold and haughty, as if nothing was wrong. The demon almost collapsed as he stumbled to a halt, but caught himself at the last moment.

"Inside, sir!" He gasped out holing his hands to a wound in his side. "The menagerie…they're escaping…" Chikara's and my eyes went wide, but for different reasons. I was thinking that this must be the distraction that Youko had talked about. The other cat demon's thoughts couldn't have been further.

"What?! No, impossible! There's no way that they could get out! I can't let them escape now! Not after spending so much time and energy getting them in the first place!" He strode off to the Tower with long, angry strides, several other male demons falling in behind him. In the confusion that ensued outside, I found it fairly simple to slip inside after Chikara and his entourage had gone through. Instead of heading to the menagerie, though, I went further down, to the hall where my room was. Shortly before I came to my room, I paused by a section of the wall that seemed like any other in this tower made of stone. Checking to make sure no one was watching, I quickly reached out and grasped the torch bracket nearest me, pulling it forward and to the side, as I had seen Chikara do.

The chamber was exactly how it had been several weeks ago, when Chikara had shown me the amulet. Quickly crossing over to the throne in the middle, I knelt down at the front, searching for the small, carved piece that was the key. Finding it, I twisted it and pulled outwards, causing it to slide out smoothly. The next piece I pushed in, depressing it so that it lay flush with the rest of the throne. This caused another piece to extend and I took that and twisted it ninety degrees to the left. The whole piece came out then, leaving a dark hole in the black throne. Reaching in, I felt my hand close on the thin chain the amulet hung on.

I stared at the clay disc as I brought it out. Looking at it now, it didn't seem so threatening. Still, I made sure to keep the eye from pointing towards me, just in case. I took a deep breath to settle the sudden nervous tingling in my hands and gripped the chain and the disc firmly to dispel the tremors. With a quick jerk I broke the fine chain and let it fall to the floor with a light series of –chinks-. Now holding the disc with both hands, I closed my hands, seeing the words branded like fire across the back of my lids.

"Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter. Grant me the strength for this cursed eye to blind. Help me to make the vessel splinter, for the wielder to be subjected to the kind." I paused, feeling the eddies and currents of the power now flowing around me in an invisible river. Opening my eyes, I stared at the amulet with a fierce intensity. "By the order of your Queen, be no more!" The last words were shouted as I pressed my thumbs into the center of the disc, pulling the edges towards me. The wards on the clay circle that prevented just this sort of thing gave way before the onslaught of the power I had summoned. First a hairline crack appeared, and then one side started to pull away from the other. Finally, with a –crack- it split evenly into two halves. I felt the power that had been stored in it seep away and I released the power I had just wielded. Letting the now harmless halves of the disc drop to the floor, I slumped back against the throne, exhausted. The sound of footsteps racing down the hall made me look up just as Chikara came around the corner and into the chamber. He saw me first and his horrified expression changed briefly to confusion. Then he saw the broken amulet on the floor next to me and any confusion there had been disappeared in an instant. His brows snapped together and he took a step forward, raising his hand as if to strike me.

I stood up wearily then, not really wanting to do anything more, but knowing I had to. "By the order of your Queen, feel the consequences of your actions." I said, holding one hand up as if to stop him in his tracks. He froze and I watched solemnly as his skin and fur started to turn a pale white-gray. His eyes went wide with terror and he correctly placed the blame on me. With a growl that quickly turned into a wordless roar, he stepped forward, slower this time, but still surely. He was now standing not a foot in front of me and I was too tired to move out of his way.

I felt his arm come down across my face and shoulders, saw it as it came down like a dead weight, heard the sound it made as it cleaved the air with its passage. The force of it sent me sprawling across the floor and into the wall with a hard bump. Through eyes starting to fail on me, I saw as he tried to step forward again, but fail because his body had become too much stone. Finally, even his face became cold marble and he was frozen in place. His terror and rage filled face was the last thing I saw before I blacked out.

(Hiei's POV)

I had to give it to Ito. He really knew how to pull the different strings in this place. When the wood imp had first proposed the plan, I had thought him crazy, but when I actually saw how he planned to do it, even I had to be impressed. The tiny guy was a genius when it came to disrupting things. Now, I raced down the curving hall, followed by the sounds the newly released animals in the menagerie voiced their freedom and following the silver form of Youko. Beside me, Yusuke kept pace beside me and for once didn't have any smart remarks to make. Behind us Kuwabara stumbled along, already at his endurance's end.

All of a sudden, I lost sight of Youko and slowed down, trying to find him again. Hearing movement from up ahead to my left, I slowly advanced forward. I came upon the open section of the wall and looked in on an odd scene.

Right in front of me, next to a large, black throne that glinted in the dim lighting, was Chikara. Or, at least, I thought it was Chikara. The cat demon was pale as marble, as were his clothes, and he was frozen in place with one arm outstretched as if he had struck at something. As I edged around him, I caught a glimpse of his face and shuddered despite myself. A mix of terror, rage and some unnamable emotion was etched upon his features.

Looking away, I glanced around the room at the rich furnishings before my gaze settled on Youko. The fox demon was kneeling by the wall, leaning over something. I started to walk over to him, but then he shifted and stood up. He looked over his shoulder, at me and at the stone cat demon behind me. His face was the very picture of despair and I couldn't help but wonder why. Then I saw what he was holding as he turned completely around and I understood.

Li's still form was curled up against him, her pretty face marred by a long scratch that stretched from her temple to her chin. The only reason I didn't think she was just sleeping was the fact that her face was white as snow, the gold of her hair not helping the comparison. I didn't speak as Youko walked slowly out of the room and back up the hall, just stood there looking after him for a moment. Finally, I went over and collected the two humans, who had been staring at Chikara with a mix of fascination and disgust. They came silently at my wave and we followed after Youko in silence.

As we emerged back into the bright glare of daylight, I looked around at the demons still there. They were all looking at something I couldn't see and muttering. Suddenly, I had a very strong desire to be taller, so I could see. Then I reminded myself that I didn't have to be taller, just more powerful than everyone else. Three seconds later, there was a clear isle through the crowd. I walked down it, hands in my pockets and not looking at anyone else. Yusuke and Kuwabara followed me, but walked a bit slower and more self-consciously. At the end, I looked over the open space, thinking that whatever was there, it couldn't be more surprising than finding Chikara turned to stone and Li more or less dead. I was right, but the sight still surprised me, though why, I didn't know.

Youko was arguing with a rather intense dragon demon. He had his arms wrapped protectively around Li, but it didn't stop the dragon demon from trying to pluck her away. As I watched, rather shocked, the argument gained a new level of volume, causing several other demons to turn their heads and regard the two fighting.

"You can't have her!" Youko replied to something the dragon had said. The other's eyes blazed.

"I won the Hunt!" He pointed at his hounds, which were sitting nearby around the limp body of what seemed to be a stag. "I have the right to request any one thing from Chikara that I wish and that is the girl!" He tried again to snag Li, but Youko struck out at him, leaving three long, bleeding gashes in his hide. He growled and took a step towards Youko, raising his other arm to strike back. Youko snarled at him, all thought of ending it civilly banished from his mind.

Figuring that if this progressed any further, Li would almost certainly get even more hurt than she already was, I darted in and took hold of the limp cat demoness, telling Youko what I was doing so he'd let go. He let go and turned on the dragon demon with both hands, eyes narrowed. As I took Li back to where Yusuke and Kuwabara waited, the thought crossed my mind that the dragon demon didn't stand a chance if he didn't know who Youko was or very little if did know. I handed Li to Yusuke, having found that she was heavier than she appeared, and turned back to watch the fight, half-hoping that Youko might need some assistance. To my surprise, I found it already finished, with Youko pinning the dragon to the ground with one hand around his throat. The loser was sporting another set of gashes on his other arm, but Youko didn't have a scratch on him. The fox demon picked his would-be opponent off the ground, still with one hand, and threw him into the midst of his hounds. Dusting off his hands, he turned and came over to reclaim Li from Yusuke.

"Yusuke, get that brat to get us a portal out of here." He said, his voice raspy and hoarse, but it didn't have the disgust I was expecting. Instead, his tone was flat, with no emotion what so ever. "I have no desire to remain in the company of such filth." The dark-haired human nodded and pressed his watch-piece. A few moments and several heated questions and answers later, a swirling circle appeared in front of us. We stepped through and exited the Makai once again.

-Fifteen days later-

(Li-Sanya's POV)

I had no recollection of what happened after I blacked out in the Tower, but Yusuke and Kuwabara were more than happy to fill me in. Apparently, Youko had had to fight another demon for me, though, when I asked Kurama, he had no idea what I was talking about. Soon after they came back to the Spirit World, though, Hiei told me that Youko had marched straight into Koenma's office and gave the toddler the lecture of his life. Botan said that her boss hadn't spoken for two days after it. From what I understand, though, they were all out of their minds with worry for me.

They had found me in a comatose state, on the verge of death, and the doctors in the Spirit World all swore that they had no idea how I had hung onto life that long or how I made the miraculous recovery that I did. Even I had no idea. All I knew was that I was happy to be back in the land of the living with my friends. From what I could see, my friends were all just as happy, especially Kurama. The moment I opened my eyes, he had been there, like the living embodiment of care and concern. After a while, though, it got annoying and I told him as much.

"Kurama!" I said, exasperated, as he fiddled with my bedcover for the millionth time in the past five minutes. "I'm fine! You don't have to make everything perfect!" Hiei glanced up from where he was sitting by the door.

"You can say that again." He muttered. I barely succeeded in keeping my sudden smile from showing, though I let him know that I found it amusing. Kurama hadn't caught it, though, so he just looked up at me.

"Well, yes, but…" He trailed off, unable to find a good reason. I sighed.

"You ran out of reasons a good thirteen hours ago, Kurama." I said, gentling my voice to soften the effect. "I could use some time to myself, if you really want to do something for me." He blinked, but nodded and stood. I couldn't bear to see his expression of disappointment, though, so I added, "I'll have Hiei tell you when you can come back in, okay? I promise it won't be long; I just need a rest from having people constantly in here." I was rewarded by his understanding smile and I smiled back. He left, then, grabbing Hiei and dragging him with him, despite the short fire demon's protests. As the door shut behind them, I leaned back into my pillows and sighed, closing my eyes with exhaustion.

Ever since I'd woken up early yesterday morning, everyone had been in and out of my room, asking me questions and talking about stuff. I had tried to answer all of their questions, especially Koenma's, but I was still weak from the breaking of the amulet and my mind didn't seem to always work all that well. The first time it had happened, they'd thought I'd actually gone back into a coma. Then I woke up and was fine. The second time had been when I was talking to Kurama. I had been talking about what I had done in the Tower when I just seemed to space out. When Kurama had asked me something, I had had no idea what he was talking about. This had lasted for about an hour and a half before I remembered anything about the mission or even who the others were. Episodes like these had happened several more times over the past day and the doctors, after examining me, said that they had been caused by my hitting my head so hard on the wall and that I might never be free of them.

Unbidden, the verse that had been written on the back of the amulet came to mind. Rather surprised, I recited it softly to myself, fitting in what the others had told me and what I knew of how it had come true.

"A cursed eye, a demon's wrath.

The queen's own law, a thief lord's whip.

Two humans and one who has no home,

Traveling together for this trip.

Go now, past the haunting notes,

To where the Lord holds sway.

Darkness will light the path,

A fire will show the way.

Now, queen, triumphant return,

Back to the one you hold dear.

The day has begun to dawn,

On the birth of a New Year.

Six shall go, six shall come,

But two in one will take the role,

As broken the disc will be,

Taken for a great toll.

Now tell me true, the answer you know,

What is given freely, stolen it cannot be,

Taken in gratitude, held close to the heart.

Can soften a demon's heart and can never truly be seen.

More precious than gold, more beautiful than silver,

Both protection and a weapon, never seen in war,

Sometimes found when the other is gone,

Not even the purest evil can mar?"

I sighed, trying to remember everything it had meant. "Now, let's see…There was the amulet, Chikara, myself, Kurama/Youko, Yusuke, Kuwabara, Hiei and Hakana that were mentioned. We six went to the Tower, where the 'Dark Lord' held sway and we went past the Singing Stones, the 'haunting notes'. According to Hiei, the 'darkness that lights the path and the fire that shows the way' were the tunnel and himself. I was triumphant and I did return, on New Year's Day none the less, to see Kurama looking at me intently." I smiled at the memory of how I had woken up to find Kurama's face scant inches from mine and refused to do anything until he was out of my face. "We all came back, even Hakana, who chose to stay with us rather than return to his actual home. Youko and Kurama are two in one and Youko played the part of an invited guest, which, apparently, he was. The disc was broken and the toll was Chikara's life and my own collapse. But the riddle at the end is still unanswered." I rolled over to stare at the wall in frustration. "What is it?"

I fell asleep with it still running through my mind and my dreams were all based off of it, some odd and obviously unrealistic, others that were so realistic that I wasn't sure if I was dreaming or not. When I woke up, for a moment I wasn't sure if I had woken up.

The room around me was dark and there was someone sitting on the edge of my bed, but in the lack of light, I couldn't see who it was. Propping myself up, I reached out and gently touched whomever it was to get their attention. I felt more than saw them turn at my touch.

"Li?" Youko's voice was soft, as if he didn't want to break the silence. For a moment, I didn't say anything, but then, I smiled slightly, knowing he couldn't see me in the dark.

"Yes, it's me." I replied, just as quietly. "What are you doing here? I thought I told Kurama to leave me alone for a while." He laughed gently.

"You did." He chuckled. "But you forgot that I'm not exactly him, as he's not exactly me, though we're the same." I didn't quite follow the whole of what he said, but I got the general gist.

"Right." I said slowly. "So, what are you doing in here, then?" He was quiet for a moment and I could feel him shifting his position as if he was uncomfortable. This was the first time I'd seen him since I'd woken up. In fact, I was rather surprised that he hadn't come to see me sooner. Sitting further upright, I leaned forward.

"Youko? Is there something you wanted to tell me?" My imagination immediately created a whole assortment of reasons for why he would come to see me in the middle of my nap, instead of waiting until I woke up. His hesitant manner wasn't helping.

"Yes…I wanted to tell you something." He repeated, sounding unsure of himself. I frowned into the darkness.

"Well, what is it?" Twenty new reasons popped into my head. He paused, then seemed to make up his mind.

"This." Leaning forward, he pressed his lips against mine before I could protest. For a second I was shocked, then I gave in and kissed him back, suddenly forgetting every reason my mind had come up with. Lost in my emotions, I didn't think it odd that the riddle popped back into my head. Smiling against Youko's lips, I said the answer silently to myself.

_Love._

* * *

A/N: Well, there you have it. The end. However, it's not the end of the story, just this part. The sequel will follow Hiei and an OC through their adventures, though Li will be coming back (why wouldn't she?) and more OCs will be introduced. What fun!

I have decided to give you guys a list of the original characters that were used in the production of this story. They are as follows:

Li-Sanya

Chikara

Hakana

Ito

Junei

That's about the lot of them. Wow. Only five. Well, there will be more coming in the sequel, so I guess it's not that bad...Still...ah, well.

I'm going to post the epilogue, which will serve as an introduction to the sequel, right after this is posted. So, keep checking for it. See you later!

Haliaetus


	16. Epilogue

A/N: Well, it's really short, but here's the epilogue to Roses for a Queen and the introduction to The Fire Lord. (That's the first time I've mentioned the sequel's title, by the way.) Enjoy.

* * *

I rolled over in my bed, expecting to see Kurama lying there next to me. When I found the bed empty, I propped myself up and blinked down sleepily. On his pillow was a note, hastily written in his handwriting. I sighed and reached over to pick it up.

Li, Hiei's gone missing, or so Yusuke informed me this morning. I tried to wake you but you refused to wake up, so I let you be. If you need us or want to know where we are, use the communication device Koenma gave you. It's sitting on the dresser.

Love, Kurama

I sighed again and rolled back over the other way. Across the room, I could see the surface of the dresser. The small black communicator was sitting next to a slim vase that held a single red rose. I smiled, unable to stay mad at Kurama for long.

Getting up, I quickly dressed and took a shower. As I finished drying my hair, I went over to stand in front of the dresser, staring at my reflection in the mirror. The past two years hadn't done much to my appearance, but my hair now reached the small of my back and I had grown about an inch. The golden eyes that stared back at me, though, were still the same ones that had defied Chikara at the last, stubborn and proud, but still full of youthful energy. Quickly pinning my hair up in a messy bun, I picked up the communicator. Pushing the large button on its side, I kept it held down as I spoke to it.

"Hello? Is anyone there?" A moment later, Botan's voice answered me, sounding harried and tired.

"Li? Oh, thank goodness! Can you come help us? I'm afraid we're not getting very far in finding Hiei." She said through the static.

"Sure. Where are you?"

"We've managed to track him to Piccalla Creek, but now even Kurama's lost the trail." I bit my lip for a second before I answered.

"Okay. I'll be right there." I let the communicator go dead and, pocketing it, I strode out of my room, down the hall and the flight of stairs to the living room. Going straight to the bookshelf, I quickly located what I wanted and turned back around, calling up a portal to where the others were.

It was time to keep my promise to Hiei.

* * *

A/N: So, how many of you remembered Li telling Hiei that she'd help him find the Fire Stone? And, how many of you, having just read that, went back to find the exact spot where it happened? Just kidding. Anyway, the Fire Stone does play a large part in the Fire Lord, so you should keep that in mind when you start reading it.

Thank you so much to all of you who have read this thing from the very beginning as well as to all of you who might read it after it's finished. I don't care when you read it, so if you want to send me a review months after it's complete, I'd love to hear from you.

So, this is goodbye until The Fire Lord is posted. Adios, my dear readers and good luck!

Haliaetus

(Wow. I felt like I was dying there and giving you guys my last words...creepy...)


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